Dawn Shields

New Blog is up! www.dawnshieldsblog.com

2009-03-26T12:13:00.001-07:00

Here is where we will be blogging from now on! We would LOVE to hear your thoughts. www.dawnshieldsblog.com

NEW BLOG COMING!!!!

2009-03-25T14:53:00.000-07:00

We have a new blog almost done ;-) Can't wait to share it with you!!

Kelin!

2009-02-24T11:47:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pics of sweet little Kelin. We just love her!

Award Winning Image!!

2009-02-24T11:28:00.001-08:00

Since Dawn is a little too modest to make this posting herself, the girls here at Dawn Shields Photography and Metropolitan Bride Magazine are really excited to announce that this amazing image stole 3rd place at our Wedding and Portrait Photographers International convention! This is such a wonderful achievement and we are so proud of you Dawn! Congrats!

-Whitney

Photography 101 Class, February 28

2009-02-06T09:46:00.000-08:00

After requests from several clients and friends, we are excited to let all of you know that we have decided to hold a photography 101 class. The cost for this one day informational course will be $250. The space is limited, so make sure you contact Whitney at 880-6600 or email her at whitney@dawnshields.com to hold your position in our photography class. The fee will also include your lunch plus some great tips and demonstration while working in photoshop. Looking forward to it!!

Models needed!

2009-01-28T14:09:00.001-08:00

Hey Friends!

Well I have a couple different things coming up that will require models, some print work and also some modeling for photographers. If you know someone who you think would be perfect and is very photogenic please have them contact me at dawn@metbride.com
When they contact me have them send a couple pictures of themselves to help us in the selection process.

Thanks!
Dawn

Kyla will be on KSPR 33 tomorrow!

2009-01-15T15:32:00.000-08:00

Hey all watch Kyla on KSPR 33 tomorrow morning talking about the wedding show and all the latest wedding trends! Her segment is at 6:45am tomorrow morning. YEA KYLA!!!

Metropolitan Bride Wedding Show!!

2009-01-13T14:27:00.001-08:00

Make sure to come to the bridal show this Sunday January 18th.
It is taking place at the Springfield Expo Center
located at 635 St.Louis Springfield Mo 65806

It is going to be the bridal event of the season! We are so excited for this weekend and just thrilled to share all of the best vendors in the Springfield Metro area with you!

There will be valet parking provided by Springfield Parking. The playoff Games will be aired in our "Mens Tent". Please come and join us!

Mandy and Matt

2008-12-30T15:07:00.000-08:00

So it's been awhile since I have posted some of my work. I thought I would share a couple of photos from a great wedding I did in Oct. I hope you enjoy the pictures of this sweet couple. :-)

Bambi Cantrell Workshop!

2008-12-29T14:27:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share this very exciting news with everybody! Bambi Cantrell is coming to the midwest to teach a workshop. We are honored to have her here in Springfield Missouri. The dates are March 9th-11th. It is a full 3 day workshop and her first one for 2009! Please visit her website at www.cantrellportrait.com for
all the info.

The Cover of Metropolitan Bride!! Image shot by Bambi Cantrell

2008-12-03T08:40:00.000-08:00

Here it is!!! We are so excited, this has been just an amazing experience! The Magazines will be on the shelves in Barnes and Noble in Springfield tomorrow. I am thrilled to share this cover image with you, it is something I have been wanting to do since the day we decided it was the cover. Thank you to everybody who was involved in the creation of this bridal magazine, it has been an incredible journey.

Hugs!
Dawn

Jennifer and Nick!

2008-11-26T13:16:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pics from Jennifer and Nick's engagement session, Nick plays arena football so we had to go to a football field to pull in the personal touch...Jennifer's idea :-) I loved this session and had so much fun shooting it!

Thanks Guys!

Hugs,
Dawn

The Magazine print started TODAY!!!!!

2008-11-26T08:34:00.000-08:00

Here is a sneak peek of the magazine! It was an awesome morning going to the printers and seeing our first page come off the press. It looked Beautiful!!!! We were all so excited, it was like this whole office got to see their baby for the first time. What a great way to go into the holidays, very thankful!

Hey Check out this Trash the dress Video!

2008-11-20T09:17:00.001-08:00

Here is another video filmed by Brandon Goodwin of a Trash The Dress session.

Hope you enjoy!

Thanks to our wonderful Trash The Dress couple Doug and Mandon.

Check out Goodwin Films.

I am on Facebook now!

2008-11-15T07:53:00.000-08:00

I thought I would let you all know that I now FINALLY have a facebook page :-) SO feel free to look me up!

I also have SOOOOO much I want to blog, so hang in there with me and I will try to get some stuff up this next week!

I will also be sharing the front cover of our Bridal Mag with you soon...It's beautiful!!! Thanks to Bambi Cantrell!

Check out this wedding video from Hye Jin and Ashish's wedding

2008-11-14T12:01:00.000-08:00

I photographed an amazing wedding in Seattle this past August. It was SOOOOO much fun so I thought I would share a couple of teaser video's from Reel Thing Entertainment who shot all the video for this incredible event. This wedding was two full days of fun!

Enjoy!

Day 1
Day 2

Check out the Photography Network!

2008-10-30T15:58:00.000-07:00

“From the hearts and minds of 3 top photographers – Denis Reggie,
Bambi Cantrell and Joe Buissink -- comes a new upstart broadcast network for photography lovers of every stripe: The Photography Network (www.thephotographynetwork.tv). This venture (akin to HGTV or the Food Network) will focus on providing 24/7/365 TV broadcast quality “webisodes” to entertain, inspire and educate viewers on the inner workings of some of the world’s top photography talents, studios, schools and galleries. In addition to watching fun and “edu-taining” programs of all types, viewers will be able to showcase their best images, network with other impassioned photographers, compete in contests, and interact with knowledgeable experts.

Some would say it’s about time, huh?!!

The beta launch is scheduled for December and the full network
launch in February ’09. To sign up to be a part of the private beta launch in December go to www.photographynetwork.tv.”

So how amazing does this sound?! I'm hooked already! Just wanted to share this with all my photo friends out there, we are blessed enough to have Bambi as one of our close friends so she wanted us to all be a part of the beta launch :-)

Hugs,
Dawn

Sarah and Brent!

2008-10-24T07:15:00.000-07:00

Here are some more pictures from my Iowa wedding. We had so much fun while we were there! Sarah's family could not have been kinder to us than they were. This was a group of people who were HUGE Nebraska Husker fans so needless to say they knew how to celebrate a great occasion. Sarah had the video slide show we produce of wedding day photos at her reception, so below are some images that were on the slide show. I hope you enjoy the pictures below of this beautiful couple!

Dawn

Dawn, Kyla, and Whitney's Corny Adventure...Welcome to Iowa folks!

2008-10-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

Kyla and her corn!

Me (dawn),Kyla and Whitney...in the corn field.

Check out this house and their halloween decorations...UNREAL! It's in Good Hope IL. We had to stop and take pictures!

Our welcome gift bag! Those snacks are long gone! ;-)

Some rehearsal pictures with our wonderful couple, Brent and Sarah!

Kyla & Adam, he is one of our past grooms who we LOVE! Also thanks to his wonderful wife Shanna refering us we ended up with this awesome wedding :-)

A couple more of Sarah and Brent!

So we put the tires to the pavement at about 5:30 yesterday evening to photograph a wedding in Iowa. Thursday night was lots of laughs, giggles, and pretty much a five hour non stop business meeting, all blended into one. We made it as far as Quincy, IL our first night, which I only got this far by stopping for my trusty bag of sour gummy worms. Once we checked into the hotel, it took me all of five minutes to fall asleep, and Whitney and Kyla soon realized they were talking to what might have well been a dead person. When we got up in the morning we headed to the nearest Starbuck's, and today is when the corny adventure really started. After seeing nothing but fields of corn, we decided we had to stop and take a picture of us in front of a corn field. Kyla and Whitney could not stop laughing after Kyla decided we needed to take an ear of corn home with us as a souvenir. We finally made it to Davenport, IA (the home of John Deer) and are so thrilled to be shooting the wedding of our amazing couple Sarah and Brent.

Bambi Cantrell's Visit!

2008-10-12T07:31:00.001-07:00

Here are a couple of images of Bambi working and Jennifer and David's wedding. Bambi had come into Springfield to shoot the cover of our premier issue of our new bridal magazine (it will be out in Dec). This just happen to work out for my bride and groom on the day she came in. I was planning on Bambi going back to the house for some rest after a long flight, but she came to my wedding and worked all day with me! Jennifer and David were thrilled and had so much fun with her. Bambi has been my mentor for several years now and to have her come here and work one of my weddings along side of me was such an honor. I have looked through Jennifer and Davids images and they are AWESOME!!!! Bambi did an amazing job! How many Springfield brides can say their wedding was shoot by one of the top 10 photographers in the world?! Thanks for everything Bambi!

Hugs!
Dawn

Cyndi and Brandon's e-session!

2008-10-12T06:49:00.000-07:00

Here is another fun engagement session! Cyndi and Brandon did two separate engagement session, it was a great way to give them two totally different looks :-) I put up a few from each session I hope you enjoy! Thank to this fabulous couple for two great evenings of fun, I can't wait until the wedding!

Hugs!
Dawn

Sorry for not posting...in Venice with Yervant!

2008-10-08T05:30:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to say I'm sooo sorry I have not posted images from Bambi's trip to visit me. I know I have several people waiting on the images so I will get to it very soon. For those who do not know My husband and I have purchased a regional bridal magazine and wedding expo. Bambi came to Springfield to shoot the cover and some of the inside spreads. To have her talent on this Magazine is just unbelievable! I am So excited about this project! What a dream for a photographer to have a magazine! I LOVE the wedding industry so this is a perfect match.

I am currently in Venice Italy doing a photography workshop with one of my mentors and a good friend, Yervant. I love doing these workshops it keeps me fresh and learning from the Best photographers in the world is such a blessing to me personally and to my business. Big hugs to Bambi and Yervant!

Bambi Cantrell is in Springfield!

2008-09-27T20:30:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let you know to keep your eye out for my next couple of postings! Bambi is in town to help me with Shooting a bridal magazine cover and inside spread of wedding dresses. She flew in today and came to my wedding with me...now that was one LUCKY BRIDE! She worked the whole time! I will be shooting pics of her working while the shoot is going on tomorrow. We have 4 beautiful models she will be working with and a beautiful location. Can't wait to share!

Dawn

Tanya and Jonathon

2008-09-24T16:21:00.000-07:00

Here is another WONDERFUL couple who I am blessed with the opportunity to shoot their wedding day. First we did the engagement session so here it is! Keep an eye out for the wedding images, it was last weekend and I promise some really great stuff! :-)

Hugs,
Dawn

Brad and Mandy!

2008-09-16T15:18:00.000-07:00

I have been shooting a lot of engagement sessions the past couple of weeks. Here is another I wanted to share, Brad and Mandy are just total cuties! I LOVED working with them, they are head over heels in love without a doubt! :-) They are going to have a great wedding so I will be sure to share that also.

Thanks Brad and Mandy!

Scott and Brooke's Engagement Session

2008-09-12T17:54:00.001-07:00

Here is a great downtown session I wanted to share. Brooke and Scott are two of the coolest people! I think anyone who knows these two has to LOVE being around them...I know I did :-) Oh and the writing on the wall is real, I love it when I find stuff like that! I will have to share Brooke and Scott's wedding with you as I'm sure it will be a great one!

The Hunsakers!

2008-09-12T12:26:00.001-07:00

Just wanted to share some pics I took with you. Don, Kim and the girls were so fun to work with. I have known Don and Kim since I was 19! Yea...that's been awhile ;-)
So needless to say it was fun to spend some time with them and their beautiful children.
Thanks guys it was fun!

Hugs,
Dawn

p.s.

Thanks for the "funnyface" shots! I love it when I have parents who play along :-)

Nora is 1 year old! Happy Birthday!!!!

2008-09-11T12:05:00.000-07:00

Here is sweet little Nora! Thanks to Brandon and Ashley for blessing us with the past year of time we have had photographing their beautiful daughter.

Hugs!
Dawn

Meet Austin Brown!

2008-08-28T11:00:00.000-07:00

I also wanted to share this chapter of Greg and Debbie's life with you. They recently had their second child Austin. He is SOOO beautiful! I am looking forward to every photo session I have with him. I think if you look at Peyton's picture in the post below you will see how much they look like eachother...There's some strong genes in the Brown family :-) I want to say thank you to Greg and Debbie for allowing me to photograph their wonderful family.

Hugs,
Dawn

Remembering Peyton Brown

2008-08-26T16:11:00.000-07:00

This is a very hard subject for me to talk about but I want to share this with you. One of the very first post I did was of a sweet baby girl named Peyton. I first met and became friends with Debbie, Peyton's mom 14 years ago. So I was thrilled to have her on my monthly baby plan. I had the honor of photographing her beautiful life for four months. She past away very unexpectedly and left behind a lot of family and friends who will love her and cherish her memory forever. Her parents found a wonderful way to work through their personal grief and remember her with a cookbook of recipes given to them by friends and family. All the proceeds go to benefit the James River Assembly children's wing. Please contact Peyton's mom Debbie at dbrown2257@sbcglobal.net to purchase this cookbook. I have to say it is a very impressive book that was developed by parents for the love of their child. I hope we all together can help with this.

Hugs,
Dawn

Meet Sid!

2008-08-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

This is our little office cutie! His name is Sid aka "baby dog" or better yet "The Urinater" lol! It seems like someone is always outside with him ;-) He sleeps on Whitney's desk a lot and he is just a little sweetheart of a dog. As I'm sure you can tell he is a chihuahua. We just LOVE him! Oh yeah he is also great for testing studio lights, that's how we got this picture of him ;-)

Kellin, a sweet little cutie in our baby program!

2008-08-19T10:55:00.001-07:00

Here is a session I wanted to share with you. I photographed Jeff and Kristen's wedding and now I get to photograph their sweet baby girl. This is one of the greatest things about being a wedding photographer, you get to be with a family from day one. This was Kellin's second session and she is just a little doll to be around. Can't wait for the next time!

Jellyfish on our Vacation...Yikes!

2008-08-13T07:37:00.001-07:00

It's our first Jellyfish sting! Ouch! I wish it wuld have been me or better yet my husband ;-) But it was our 11 year old daughter. She came out of the water with tears streaming down her face and she said "I think I have been stung by a jellyfish". We looked all over her leg and saw nothing, so I asked what it felt like and she said "needles everywhere". Within in a couple of minutes the whelps appeared and proved her right. I had planned on posting some beach pictures from our vacation but this was not what I was thinking. Today they look like scraps and she is doing just fine, probably proud that she took her first hit by a jellyfish. She is a pretty tough girl :-)

Seattle with Hye Jin and Ashish!

2008-08-09T20:06:00.000-07:00

I wanted to put up a teaser picture of these two amazing people. I cannot wait until I can show you more of what I shot! Hye Jin and Ashish were up for doing whatever I wanted to do. The photography was such an important part of their day so as you can guess I was on cloud nine all day! I love traveling to other locations and doing destination weddings, I always feel so inspired by all my new surroundings. I hope you enjoy this teaser and I can PROMISE you will be seeing more from this wedding.

Jim Garner Workshop photos! Here's my team!

2008-07-30T13:42:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics my great friend DJ Ellis took over the course of our trip. If you put a group of photographers together we are more than happy to come up with crazy ideas like spell out J Garner with our bodies! :-) By the way whitney and I are the "A" lol! I know Jim was the first part of the "G" and Jonathon Chan was the other part of the "G". Oh and Dorinda os the "R" Other than that...I can't remember...Oops! :-) Thanks Jim and Katarina work a great workshop and thanks DJ for these fun shots!

Here is the whole crew! What a great trip I miss them already!

The girls were having great girl bonding time...love that!
In the picture is is Kayla (She is a part of Team Garner), Katarina (Jim's Wife of course!), Dawn (ME!) Jennifer (DJ's lovely wife and one of the coolest chics I know!),Whitney (Works for Team Shields and the best rooming buddy ever!), Dorinda (We have known each other since "Back in the Day" enough said!) lol! and Dorene (My sweet Dorene, we have known each other since our first Bambi workshop many years ago...Love her!). The only girl missing is Stephanie, we love her too!

Workshop with Jim Garner

2008-07-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

It has been a fun couple of days in Seattle!

We spent the first day touring Jims studio and had some great learning time. They had several beautiful models come in that were just a dream to work with. We did our day 1 shoot in downtown Seattle at all of Jim's favorite locations. This was followed up by a great dinner out then we headed to the Garner's beach home. The beach home was full of treats including dessert and a beach-side fire :-)

I am so excited to post some pictures of this workshop group for you! I will get to work on that tonight when we get done with our night shoot. Today has just been loaded with tons of information including photoshoto and album design. Jims wife Katarina has also been teaching on her part of the business, so needless to say it's been busy and lots of fun! This is a total luxury workshop so it has been just a great experience all the way around.

NYC with Hye Jin and Ashish

2008-07-17T14:33:00.000-07:00

I went to New York last week to do an engagement session, and in a word it was fun! Hye Jin and Ashish were the perfect host to me. They took me around the city not only to shoot but also to show me around. We did everything from ride in a taxi, jump on the subway, and walked the city. Dinner was awesome, with me you can never go wrong with sushi! Some of the places we visited were Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Grand Central Station and of course Times Square. :-) I was so excited for their wedding before but now I really am! The connection between us was great and they were just incredible to work with. Take a look at the session below, I hope you enjoy it!

Hye Jin and Ashish, Thank You! Only two more weeks, I can't wait to see you both!

Alexis and Randy

2008-07-10T09:54:00.000-07:00

Here is another fun engagement session I would like to share with everyone. Alexis and Randy are just a blast to work with and just SOOO happy! Thanks to both of them for such a fun session!

Dawn

San Francisco! With Bambi Cantrell and Micheal Muramoto

2008-07-09T12:32:00.001-07:00

SO I have one of the coolest jobs out there! My friend Michael Muramoto and I got together in San Fran to do a shoot together. It just so happened that my dear friend Bambi Cantrell called to see how things were going about a week before I left for California. When she found out we were coming she welcomed us with open arms and had us come to her new studio to shoot! It was awesome! There are a few pics below from my time with Bambi Cantrell and Michael Muramoto. A couple who I have become very close with is Cassie and Greg, they drove to San Fran from Los Angeles to play with us! It was amazing to have them there with me. Another couple was there shooting with Michael, Regina and Brent, they were also fun to hang with. I will post more photos soon! Oh and these lucky couples were blessed enough to have Debi Gasperson and Jennifer Chadwell there doing hair and make-up....how cool is that! I am in NYC doing an engagement session right now so I will make more postings from California and NYC when I have the photos ready! Below is the quick sneak peek!

Vicki & Ryan

2008-06-30T10:15:00.001-07:00

Here is a sneak preview of an engagement session I did for Ryan and Vicki. They are such a great couple and I have to say have been so good to me over the past couple of years! Ryan is the GM for a restaurant called Trolley's in Springfield and Kansas City Missouri. They always treat my wedding couples right that like to go have a champagne toast. Much love to you both and I hope you enjoyed the session as much as I did.

Hugs!

Daddy's Girl

2008-06-30T08:49:00.000-07:00

For Father's day Miss Nora thought she would give her dad Brandon a special photo session. I had so much fun with them, Nora really has a personality now and loves her daddy. I photographed Brandon and Ashley's wedding in 2006 and I have enjoyed watching their family grow. I can't believe Miss Nora is 9 months old! Here are some photos from their special session. As you can see there is no denying that they are father and daughter.

Jade's Bridal

2008-06-16T15:06:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to share some pics I took of Jade. She was my 06.07.08 bride,and just amazing to work with! I can't wait to share some of their wedding pictures with you. We are working as fast as we can so we will make postings as often as possible. Thanks to Jade for hiring me and letting me have fun with her on her bridal and on her wedding day!

Kathleen & Matt

2008-06-16T10:50:00.000-07:00

Here is a sneak peek for Kathleen and Matt. I really enjoyed my time alone with this couple, it just all seemed to fall in place for us! Kathleen had told me of her love for Staircase pictures so I had to do a few pics on these awesome stairs! Thanks to you both for for trusting me to photograph such a great day.

Diane and Chad

2008-06-13T14:43:00.001-07:00

Just a few pictures I did at a wedding in Branson Missouri I thought I would share. A huge thanks to my beautiful bride Diane and her new husband Chad for being so great to work with. Hugs to you both!

Check out Bambi's blog!

2008-06-05T15:49:00.000-07:00

I love, love, love, this woman! She is absolutely one of the best photographers in the industry. She has been blogging and has some great stuff, so take a look!
www.cantrellportrait.bigfolioblog.com

Private workshop at beach house with Jim Garner

2008-05-30T07:03:00.000-07:00

Hey all! I had asked Jim to do a small workshop for me and my staff. We came up with the idea to have a small private workshop for my staff and photography friends. Most of the spots were taken up yesterday which was the first day I asked anybody. We are still able to have about 2 more people come and share. If you are interested send me an e-mail at dawn@dawnshields.com Jim is hosting up at his beach house just outside of Seattle. The website is www.surfcrestbeachhouse.com We will be there learning for 3 days, it will include shooting in downtown Seattle with models, lots of photoshop and album design. The cost is $1200 and that includes your accommodations at the beachhouse! I hope to share this experience with a couple of more friends. Email me soon if you are interested. dawn@dawnshields.com

Zach and Becca's Engagement

2008-05-27T16:28:00.000-07:00

So, I got to photograph the rocker guy and his beautiful girlfriend. They were such a cool couple and very easy to work with. I love working with other artist because they are so trusting and just want you to do your thing the way you do it...LOVE THAT! So I am sharing several images from their session with you. Thanks to Zach and Becca for just being themselves and letting me have a great time with them. I will try to find out if Zach's band has a website and I will post it here if they do, so check back for it!

Kristy and Tim

2008-05-27T15:22:00.000-07:00

Okay here is my wedding from a couple of weeks ago! Tim and Kristy are the couple I had mentioned that got to go out on the KC Chiefs field. This is a wedding that was just sooo much fun and provided me with all the time I needed to have some serious shoot time with them. Like I said in my earlier post the person in charge at the stadium told me this was a one time thing so just letting everybody know ;-) Oh and at the bottom is a pic that Tim requested be taken with his wedding "team". Hope you enjoy it Tim!

Bambi Cantrell and Jim Garner Workshop

2008-05-23T12:41:00.000-07:00

For all of you photographers out there you need to check into this! This workshop is
being held by the one photographer who helped change my career...Bambi Cantrell! Bambi Blew me away several years ago with an incredible education on the art of photography and the business aspect that is so important. She is teaming up with another amazing photographer Jim Garner. Jim is one of my closest friends and someone who has taken his business did a total reinvention. Both of their images have won some of the highest honors in the industry, so needless to say an in depth workshop with these two photographers is going to be a life changing experience for anyone who attends. Go to www.payitforwardworkshops.com and send them an e-mail for more information. I promise it will be incredible!

Carmen and Paul

2008-05-23T12:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a little sneak peek into Carmen and Paul's day. They did a video slideshow at the wedding of their wedding day images. It was a hit and so much fun for them to get to reflect on everything that happened thoughout the day. Just a note to Paul and Carmen, It was such and honor and so much fun being your photographer. Thank you for everything! Big hugs to you both!

Dawn

Back up and Back up again!

2008-05-20T15:44:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry for not blogging in a while. I have been dealing with a hard drive that has went down on us...fun fun! We happen to be crazy around here about backing up our files in more than one location so that is a total blessing. But I just wanted to remind all the photographers out there to have at everything backed up multiple times. I have been counting my blessings that some good friends taught me that a long time ago! So if I can help someone to not loose files I want to. So this is your reminder :-) I promise you will be seeing some blogging this week. I just shot a wedding Saturday and we got to go out on the KC Chiefs field and take pictures! So much fun! But don't bother calling asking to do it because they assured me this was a one time deal. I guess there were some special circumstances that allowed this to happen, I'm just happy I was there
to photograph it! I promise to share :-)

I Love This Family!

2008-05-15T12:41:00.000-07:00

Here is one of my families in my baby program. They are so much fun to work with a just an honor to photograph. I can't wait till our next shoot!

Chloe's rainey day

2008-05-12T06:54:00.000-07:00

Here was a session that went a little differently than planned! We were about 5 mins into he session when it just started pouring down rain, hail and all. So we took cover on the front porch of an old house close by, here a a few pictures from the session. The last pic you can see chloe is biting her nails just watching the rain.

Jason & Liza....wedding and engagement!

2008-05-05T15:05:00.001-07:00

I wanted to share a couple of photos from Liza and Jason's engagement and wedding! They booked with me a long time ago, and finally the day came. As always Liza looked beautiful and both of them were so laid back and a total joy to work with. Thanks to Liza and Jason for letting me photograph such an amazing day in their lives!

Sandy and Dave

2008-05-01T14:49:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to show you a picture of my sweet Sandy! I babysat Sandy and her sister Emily for YEARS! So when I got the phone call to fly to Dallas to photograph her wedding there was only one answer...YES! then my second thought was DANG I'M GETTING OLD! lol ;-) I tried to boss her around and make her see the groom ahead of time but she pretty much told me my days of bossing her around were over...Darn! lol :-) So when Sandy makes her beautiful walk down the isle it will be Dave's first time to see her that day, and I am VERY supportive of that...because Sandy told me I was supportive of it! LOL! just joking! I'm so excited and cannot wait to see her in May!!

Congrats to Jim Garner!!

2008-04-29T14:33:00.000-07:00

I love to share the success of my friends, Jim Garner was just named one of the top
ten photographers of 2008 by American Photo Magazine! So we just want to send out our love and support to Jim & Katarina Garner of J. Garner Photography. Also to Claire Parkin who is one of the people who works behind the scenes to help make this business a success.
Congrats guys! You deserve it!!

Just say "Blog Me Baby"! ;-)

2008-04-27T11:59:00.000-07:00

Hey Everybody!

Just a quick note for my clients, if you would love to see your images on the blog just drop me a line and I will get you up! I have had a few clients ask me why they were not put on the blog or if they "didn't make the cut"....NO WAY OF COURSE YOU DID! :-) We tend to blog what we just finished up on the days we blog, so if you are not on here tell me and I would LOVE to blog you!

Big Hugs To You All!
Dawn

Teaser pic for Carmen!

2008-04-23T16:49:00.000-07:00

Okay so it is true...I have the most beautiful brides! Every single one of them! I am always amazed at what I see when looking through the lens of my camera. we have all been blessed with such wonderful individual beauty and I am thankful I have the amazing honor of photographing it. Carmen is no exception! We had so much fun while doing her bridal session, so here is the teaser picture for all to see! Thanks Carmen!

Regina and Brent's Engagement

2008-04-23T08:57:00.000-07:00

Here is a session I thought everyone would like to see. Super fun couple with amazing chemistry. Be on the look out for their "Trash The Dress" In San Francisco!! Whoo Hoo!

Misty's Bridal Session

2008-04-11T14:13:00.000-07:00

Hey All!

Here is a bridal I shot this week. Misty is wonderful to work with and just a blast to spend time around. I am SO blessed with the most wonderful brides. Almost every bride that comes my way feels like they are one of my good friends and Misty was no exception to that :-) I hope you enjoy seeing some of the images from this beautiful girls session. Thanks Misty!!

LuvBug Meeting #1

2008-04-08T13:17:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! We had our first LuvBug meeting today. It was an awesome time of networking and sharing. Sandra Peabody offered up her restaurant for our meeting and lunch. It was a jewel of a location that I never even knew existed! Peabody's Restaurant is located at 312 E Commercial St. in Springfield. What a perfect location for a rehearsal dinner! I plan on having dinner there with my husband on our next "date night":-) We had a total of 40 vendors show up for our first meeting, we were just thrilled with the turn out. We had a very positive response and I think everyone is excited for our next meeting. I just want to say Thank You to all the vendors who came,participated and shared. Below are a few quick pics we grabbed while at Peabody's. I am looking forward to the great networking opportunity next month!

They were networking AFTER the meeting on the sidewalk even! LOVE IT!

Sierra and Lauren!

2008-04-07T15:03:00.000-07:00

My daughter had one of her best friends Lauren stay the night on Friday. So I decided to take them out for a small photo session. Here are just a couple of pics from my young models. :-) Just so you know my daughter is the one with the darker hair. I would be willing to claim Lauren as my own any day though! ;-)

Seniors!

2008-04-02T14:39:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone!

You may have seen a couple of these pics before, but we wanted to share a few senior images with you. So here are 5 of the Seniors I have shot lately. I do not advertise for seniors at all but I am thinking about it....because I LOVE it! Two of the girls below look a lot alike but I promise there are 4 different girls ;-)

Have a great day!
Dawn

Kyla's Fun in KC

2008-04-02T10:07:00.000-07:00

Hi Guys, it's Kyla.

My husband and I visited my family in KC this past weekend and we were able to ride Segways. My sister Karly runs the dealership in KC, Segway Experience. Not only do they sell Segways but they give tours all over KC on them. We just dropped in to say hi and before we knew it she had us all on them and out the door. It didn't take long for us to get the hang of them, they are a lot of fun.

The store is located in Union Station so Karly took us across the street to the Liberty Memorial. At the top you get a great view of the KC skyline. Karly was telling us a lot of historic facts about the city and it made me want to take a real tour.

If you guys are in KC and looking for something to do stop by and say hi to Karly and sign up for a tour.

Here is a picture of our family at the end of our tour.

Our Newest Destination Couple!

2008-04-01T13:31:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! Here are some photos from Erica and Paul's e-session. They are getting married in Maui next October and I am privileged to photograph there awesome day. Needless to say I am so excited to spend some great beach time with them. We are planning to do a "Trash the Dress" while we are there! (yeah!). Just from the short amount of time we spent together I know Maui is going to be a blast! We had a great connection and I can't wait till Oct of '09 gets here. :-)

Mexico Video

2008-03-27T08:45:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends!

I just wanted to share some work from my great friend Brandon Goodwin. This is Super 8 taken while we were in Mexico at Megan and Nate's wedding. I personally LOVE the look of this type of film. There is something so timeless about it and it is so romantic!. Hope you enjoy!

Greg and Cassie's Album

2008-03-27T08:06:00.000-07:00

Here is a slideshow of Greg and Cassie's Album. Their wedding was October 27, 2007 in Topeka, KS. Dawn is totally excited because they have asked her to come to LA to do a Trash the Dress session. This will be happening in the next couple of months so keep checking the blog for when we post some shots!

Jennifer and Michael

2008-03-14T14:17:00.000-07:00

Here is a few pictures from a wedding I did last week. Jennifer and Michael were great to work with and just a load of fun! Their wedding was dreamy beautiful and designed by them down to the last detail. Such a great couple, I hope you enjoy!

Happy Birthday Oliver!

2008-03-14T07:37:00.000-07:00

I know I say this all the time, but it's so hard to believe how fast all of our babies are growing! It seems like yesterday when we got to do Oliver's first month pictures, and now he's already a year old. This little guy ALWAYS makes us smile, and i don't think any of us would mind if he would just stay this age for a couple more years :)

Happy First Birthday, Oliver!!!

New Promo Album

2008-03-04T11:21:00.000-08:00

Here is the new promo album we designed. We had it printed as a 10x10 Tuscany album with a red leather cover. It looks really neat. We are wanting to increase our Family and Children clientele and thought this might be a good book of examples to show everyone. Let us know what you think.

Click here to view:

Photoshop Fun!

2008-02-27T15:08:00.000-08:00

Well, since early this week, we're officially COMPLETELY caught up on editing weddings. This is an AMAZING feeling, considering we haven't had it since this time last year :) Anyway, it's given Christi a chance to re-organize (a perennial favorite) and play around a little with photoshop. So you may or may not recognize some of these images, but they're re-vamped (texture overlays)and look like totally different shots!!! Here are a couple of her favorites...

Where in the World...?

2008-02-27T13:28:00.000-08:00

This is a World map of people who have visited our blog in the past week. We would love to know who you are, where you are from, if you are a Bride and Groom, fellow Photographer, or a family member of someone spotlighted on the blog. We would love to know what you think of our blog. So far there are over 500 of you viewing the blog this week!

Mexico Beach Pictures!!

2008-02-27T04:43:00.000-08:00

Here are some of our beach pics. It was Soo much fun! Megan and Nate were a dream to work with, such great people with a beautiful journey ahead of them. I hope you have enjoyed the peek into their vows and honeymoon!

Here come the Graduates!

2008-02-26T13:19:00.000-08:00

We have two recent graduates from our Baby Program. You guys have seen these two throughout the past year so we thought you would enjoy these birthday photos. Happy 1st Birthday Finnley and Sophia.

Beautiful Mexico Day #3

2008-02-25T14:28:00.001-08:00

Here are some more! Okay tomorrow it's the beach pics! I can't wait to share them with you!!

Another great day in Mexico!

2008-02-22T14:49:00.000-08:00

This day was all about having a great time! We first went to Chichen Itza the location of some Mayan ruins. There was some beautiul photography that could have been done but we had a guard falling us around the whole time we were there. So needless to say we had to hold back a bit on pictures. After we left we did pictures in a great little town...so much fun! Also this was the same day they swam in the cave, so there are some more images below of that. I hope you enjoy!

Mexico day 2

2008-02-21T19:03:00.000-08:00

So you will have to hang with me here as I go through the pictures you see below. First of all we found out Nate is all about a good Cuban ciger! And there is nothing hotter than the boys smoking their Cuban's UNLESS they are doing while looking at a HOT MAC laptop! lol! ;-) Okay so now you know we are HUGE Mac fans.

Went into Cancun for a day, it was so much fun hanging out and getting to know eachother better. Sean and I have our favorite resturant there called "Thai". So we decided to treat Nate and Megan to a dinner we though they would find unique. I have pictures below, the booths are over the water in cool huts. Megan also had me try her favorite drink....which is now my drink of choice. Got to love a good Mojito!

The Next day we spent some quality time next to the pool. All the guys (Nate, Sean, and Brandon the videographer) played in a couple great games of pool volleyball. And YES their team won each time! So below you will see a couple of fun pics of Megan relaxing and Nate showing off his great tatoo.

Its Our 100th Posting!!!!

2008-02-21T13:51:00.000-08:00

Wow, how times flys! It is out 100th posting and I'm honored to have all of you who vistit and comment on our blog. I just want to say "Thank You" for supporting and inspiring us in our photography business. In the next couple of days I'm going to make a posting showing you a weeks worth of our visitors on a world map. I hope you all comment and tell us who you are. We would love to know what you do if you are a photographer, Bride or Groom, Family client or just visiting. Let us know what you like to see and what you find interesting and we will do everything possible to deliver. Again Thank You!

Mexico From The Beginning!

2008-02-20T19:56:00.001-08:00

Okay here are a few pics of the wonderful couple, Nate and Megan. Check out the awesome room they hooked us up with for 5 nights! You can see my husband Sean checking out the huge shower in one of the pics. We spent alot of time with Megan and Nate doing everything from drinking some favorite Mexican drinks, shopping, site seeing and of course taking photos. Nate and Sean (my husband) found one of the many things they had in common....their love of SPICY food! This is just the beginning of the trip, check back tomorrow for more blogging of this great trip!

I'm So Sorry For Not Blogging!!

2008-02-15T16:05:00.000-08:00

Hey Everybody!

I am so sorry for not blogging! We had a ice storm in Missouri and I was without power for 4 days after coming home from Mexico. Needless to say that slowed EVERYTHING down a bit for us. So please hang in there with me and I promise to have some fun pics of Megan and Nate up for you to see soon. We still have no internet so I will be at our local coffee shop to doing my blogging and e-mailing. I'm so excited to share all these pics with you guys! Thanks for hanging in there with me
:-)

Dawn

Mexico with Megan and Nate!

2008-02-08T09:21:00.000-08:00

Here are two pictures that we took yesterday in Playa Del Carmen. We are in an underground cave that has a natural pool. It's a popular place to swim but we lucked out and had it all to ourselves for a while. All at once we had huge audience and they started taking photos of us taking photos. The best part was that they gave Megan and Nate a round of applause when we finished. We had so much fun. Brandon Goodwin, with Goodwin Films, is here to so he filmed the whole thing.

Today is the wedding on the beach and then Trash the Dress-Mexico Style! I promise to post more next week after we get home. I hope you enjoy the teaser!

Megan and Nate swam across the pool the whole time holding their bags above their heads so they did not get wet! I owe so much to them for believing in me enough to go along with this...Thanks Megan and Nate!

Brandon is in Mexico!

2008-02-08T09:16:00.000-08:00

Brandon Goodwin with Goodwin Films just arrived in Mexico yesterday! Megan and Nate hired him to come and get footage of their wedding and Trash the Dress session. He will be shooting the wedding on the beach with old style 8mm film. I can't wait to see how awesome it will be. You guys might remember Brandon, he filmed Adam and Tracie's Trash the Dress last November. We will post Meagan and Nate's film from their Trash the Dress-Mexico Style when we get back and he gets it edited. Thought you might enjoy seeing pics of him here in Mexico.

Wedding in Mexico!

2008-02-06T06:51:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody!

I'm so sorry I haven't been blogging as much but that is all about to change! I am in Playa Del Carmen Mexico for 6 days to photograph a wedding and a "trash the dress"...Mexico style :-)
This couple already had a small ceromony in Missouri because it was just going to make it easier than doing the blood test and other things required here. So I'm going to put a picture below of my beautiful bride for you to see. I hope to make postings while I'm here to keep you updated on our trip!

Oliver's 10th month!!

2008-01-31T09:13:00.000-08:00

Welllllll, the weather's been crazy here in good ol' Springfield, MO! Monday's temperature started in the 60's and by afternoon, it was 27 degrees... the weatherman said we dropped 20 degrees in half an hour. Typical Missouri weather. Today, we're watching it snow like mad, and we could think of nothing cuter to share than Oliver all bundled up for his 10th month shoot; we can't believe he's almost one year old!

Hope all of you are staying warm this winter!!

Post by Christi

Need to buy a great home in Springfield?

2008-01-24T18:13:00.001-08:00

Hey All! I just wanted to shttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifhare this website of a great house here in Springfield. They are clients of mine who are going to build so their house is on the market. I LOVE this house! I tel them that every time I shoot there. I am a huge fan of this subdivision, all the homes have such great character. This is not a cookie cutter neighborhood.
Hope you like it and buy it!
www.2360brentwood.com

The New Dry Boda Bags!

2008-01-10T08:01:00.000-08:00

Okay so I got my new weatherproof Boda Bags! I am thrilled because there is now a smaller size, we lovingly refer to it as "baby boda" around here. :-) The girls (Kyla and Christi) and I decided they needed to be photographed and blogged for all the photographers out there. So here are some pics we took this morning. For all the girl photographers out there looking for a smaller bag to use during events "baby boda" is PERFECT! They nailed it on this one! Here is Boda's website for those who want to check it out further www.goboda.com. Also check out the jgarner blog for info!

The Dawn Shields Team!

2008-01-09T12:00:00.000-08:00

We are now booking weddings for my two associate photographers! This is such an exciting step for us. They have both photographed their own weddings but we made them a very important part of our business. For the couples who love my style but due to the fact I'm booked or my pricing doesn't work with their budget we now have an incredible alternative for them and that is The Dawn Shields Team. Scott and Christi both have been fully trained by me and are wonderful photographers I believe in 100%. They both have started booking up very quickly. That just let us know there was a need for their services in the photography industry, and more importantly that brides loved their style of photography! Please click the link above or go to www.dawnshieldsteam.com and take a look at their work. we would love to hear your thoughts!

Winter Promotion Book

2008-01-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

We participated in the winter All About Weddings Bridal Show this past weekend and launched our new promotion book. We thought for those of you who couldn't make it to the show we would post a slide show of the book here.

Studio Christmas Party

2008-01-07T11:15:00.000-08:00

Here are some photos from our Christmas Party at Ocean's Zen.

Kim Nave- Wedding Coordinator that helps us out with our big weddings. She is the owner of Signature Weddings by Kim

Christi Clark- Associate Photographer and Production Artist

Scott Cotton- Associate Photographer

Kyla Knight- Sr Production Artist

Michael Reynolds- Production Artist

(Dustin in the back in the stripes is Dawn's assistant)
(Dawn is in the red in the front row, everybody else is pictured above!)
The Whole Dawn Shields Gang!
Happy New Year Everyone!

January Wedding Shows & My Associate Photographers

2007-12-27T08:54:00.000-08:00

Well it's wedding show time again! We will be a part of 3 shows in January. The first one is All About Weddings on January 5th at the University Plaza Convention Center in Springfield. Our second show will be Wedding Extravaganza on Jan 19th at the Springfield Expo Center. The final Show is the West Plains show to be held on Jan. 26th in West Plains, MO at the Cowan Civic Center. It will be our first time to be a part of the West Plains show. For the brides who have contacted us and know they want to book you might want to contact us before the show at 417.880.6600 and we can get together and get your date reserved before the shows. We always have brides signing contracts at the shows so it's always good to be on the books ahead of time. I look forward to meeting all of the new brides and I always enjoy seeing my brides at the show!
Also, This will be the first year my Associate Photographers will have their own booth! Scott and Christi are so excited to be a part of the wedding shows. They are two wonderful photographers who have been fully trained by me, I am proud they are both a part of my photography team. They are at a different price point so we can serve brides with different photography budgets, we are so excited about this!

I look forward to seeing you at the shows!
Dawn

Bambi Cantrell is Blogging!!!

2007-12-24T19:07:00.000-08:00

I just had to share this with all of you photographers out there. My dear friend Bambi sent me an e-mail and told me she is now a blogger! I just about fell over! I have wanted her to blog for some time now so needless to say I am thrilled. She is one of the most talented photographers in the industry and was voted one of the top 10 wedding photographers in the world by American Photo magazine. So what more can I say besides check out Bambi's blog and drop her a comment welcoming her to the world of blogging! ;-) This is truly a gift to the photography community that she is sharing her talent with us. Thanks Bambi! Here is the link to Bambi's blog

Great First dances

2007-12-12T15:45:00.000-08:00

Okay so I have never had this happen at a wedding, but I hope I do! ;-) (hint,hint)

URBAN CARLEE!

2007-12-10T14:19:00.000-08:00

Okay so I love,love,love photographing children! But I want to photograph who they are not just take a picture of them. I want parents to see the son/daughter they love and know when they look at our work. There is such a difference between capturing them and taking a picture of them. Children are so in tune with everything and they know if you are just trying to make them do what YOU want. So to get really great pitures they have to love what it is you are doing and have FUN! Here is an Urban session with one of my family clients. I have been photographing this little girl for a few years and I love every moment I get to spend with her, I hope you enjoy looking at what she and I created together! Thanks to Carlee and her wonderful parents!

Dawn

Custom Christmas Cards!

2007-12-10T14:13:00.000-08:00

Our Families have been keeping Kyla busy designing their Christmas Cards. Thought we might share our favorites!

Megan & Derek

2007-12-04T14:27:00.001-08:00

Just thought we would share some photos from our November 3rd wedding! Megan and Derek had a beautiful Autumn themed wedding. It was perfect that the leaves were still on the trees but had the bright gorgeous colors that we love. This is a great couple and we had a lot of fun with them. Doesn't Megan make a beautiful fantastic Bride!

This is why we do what we do!!

2007-11-28T11:54:00.001-08:00

Here is a note I just received from one of my wedding clients:

Our love note to you: Where do we even start? Being we were 2,000 miles away from home, websites and phone interviews were all we had to work with! We must say that we weeded through HUNDREDS of photographers, but when we came across Dawn's website, something in our hearts told us she would be the one, and when we talked on the phone for the first time, there was an instant connection and we booked her immediately before anyone swept her up! Our first engagement session attempt is without a doubt one of the most memorable days. We were in town for only one day that October, and of course it was raining! And we don't mean a drizzle. It was an absolute downpour with crosswinds that would knock down a mule. We decided to take cover and as we were walking, our umbrella literally flipped inside out! That's when we realized it wasn't going to happen that day. Dawn was so sweet and understanding, and all she could say was how thankful she was for the time we had given her family to get away and spend time together. How selfless is she? Needless to say, our second go at the engagement session went off without a hitch, and our pictures turned out absolutely amazing! She captured the essence of the day and the love that we share for each other is so easily seen with every picture she had taken. On the day of our wedding, Dawn and her team made sure that all the focus was on us, personalizing every picture. The day moved so quickly and the details that were lost in the busyness of the day were all savored throughout every single picture. In 50 years, we will be able to sit down and look at these pictures and be able to relive the day for what it was. Thank you Dawn. Thank you for everything you've done for us. You are not only our lifelong photographer, but also our lifelong friend. We miss you terribly, and love you more than words. Here's to trashing that dress!! ~Greg & Cassie Dunkel

Maylana & Nate

2007-11-04T11:03:00.001-08:00

Here is another one of our awesome couples. We thought we would share with you some of Malayna and Nate's photos. This was such a fun wedding and we had a great time taking photos around Stone Chapel. Here's a fun fact for you: Malayna is the third girl in a group of friends who's wedding we have photographed. Enjoy the photos!

Greg & Cassie Dunkel

2007-10-31T11:51:00.000-07:00

Here is a sneak peak at Greg and Cassie's wedding. I had the most wonderful time with this couple. They booked me for their wedding about a year and a half out. So we had some great conversations over the phone and had a total of three times meeting each other before the wedding. This is really good since they lived in Arizona! We had an instant connection from day one so the whole wedding was like hanging out with great friends. It is hard to put into words how great this wedding was so I hope the pics show you what it is like when you have a great bond with your photographer/clients.

Love to you Greg & Cassie!

Trash The Dress Video!!! Goodwin Films

2007-10-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

To View the video click here

Okay so can I say once more I LOVE doing these sessions! I really hope you enjoy the video by Goodwin Films. Thanks to Brandon for the great Video and of course thanks to my wonderful couple Tracie and Adam! They have put so much trust in me from day one and it has been wonderful! Love to you both!

Dawn

Demetra & Jamie's Wedding

2007-10-26T14:10:00.000-07:00

Demetra and Jamie were wonderful. They were such a super easy couple to work with, and they're so happy!!! We feel totally blessed to have gotten to be part of their special day. They're so laid back, and Demetra is just as sweet as she is pretty :) This is actually the third couple we've photographed in a group of friends. (Remember Cortney and Breanna? They've all known each other for quite a while!!!) OH and here's a fun fact... the first time I (Dawn) met with Demetra to plan her wedding, we had to meet at Panera Bread because it was during the infamous Ice Storm of 2007... no one had any power!!!