Oh my gosh, friends!! I am on cloud nine! On Thursday my best friend asked me to spend the rest of our lives together -and obviously I said YES!! I thought a personal blog post was in order to explain some upcoming changes in my life that might affect YOU!

First off I want to brag about Evan. He has been my number one supporter from our day one. He is my biggest encourager, cheerleader, & entertainer He knows when I’m spending late nights in the studio to bring me food and ice cream. He knows when I am overly stressed out that a good bad dad joke will let me laugh off some pressure. But most of all he also knows how much my clients, business, and every single one of you that is reading this means to me. 

Secondly, Evan is also a bad ass. He is one of those people who truly and whole-heartedly believes his job is to help defend our country. My strong, handsome, and brave fiancé leaves for his active military duty in North Carolina in just over a month. I am so proud of him for pursing his dream and for defending our country. 

Thirdly, we have always talked about having a short engagement. I plan things best under pressure & we both are just too excited to spend forever together to wait very long. We are currently planning for an early spring wedding in Havre pending his military leave. I felt this blog post was necessary to set some things straight from the rumor mill. I’m not moving. But I am moving. 

After our spring wedding I plan to spend until early May with him in North Carolina. When I come back in May I won’t be taking any photography clients until the middle of June because I was offered the amazing opportunity to act with Fort Peck Summer Theatre. I will start scheduling photo sessions June 20th, 2017 and continue to book sessions through October. From October on, is a little unknown. My schedule will all depend on Evan’s schedule with the military whether or not come October I move back to North Carolina or stay in Havre. I will be back for sure June of 2018 for more sessions & to photograph my 2018 weddings! It will be the “off-season” or winter months where my whereabouts may be unknown or scattered.

Some more changing news: As of February 22nd, 2017 I will no longer be able to photograph newborn babies, take on any more watch me grow sessions, or indoor 1st birthday sessions. The unpredictability of newborns’ due dates makes scheduling very difficult & overwhelming for my schedule. As much as I LOVE (oh gosh do I LOVE) snuggling those babes, I cannot provide the best service to you all with my changing schedule. I have some great recommendations for other newborn photographers in the area – so if you are expecting after February – just let e me know and we will find you a photographer!

I also will be booking less appointments to offer a better client experience for you all. This last summer I worked almost every single day, with multiple shoots a day. While I believe we had an awesome time & got some of my favorite picture this far – I wasn’t able to turn around the photos as fast or offer any other products other than the digital files. So I will be scheduling one session per day I am available for the 2017 summer/fall season. Every session will include the beautiful online gallery, 10 years of storage, a USB of the final images, and the option of a canvas print or 10 page photo book. Every high school senior girl who books her senior session with me will receive hair and makeup & a visit to The Key (every senior boy too if that strikes his fancy). I am hoping for a more customized and even better overall client experience with my ability to give you more products with your digital images!

I am still taking weddings for 2017 & 2018 with dates still available in July, August, September & October! I am going to start booking for Summer 2017 as soon as people start calling. I am anticipating to book the 2017 summer up before my first appointment in June, so: HIGH SCHOOL JUNIORS if you know you want me for your senior picture experience, book as soon as possible!! Same goes for family pictures! Now is the time to book & start saving for your pictures that will capture your life as it is right now! 

There is a lot of change happening in 2017 for myself, Evan and Merry Character Photography. I am SO excited for my future with Evan and for my future clients and the new client experience! I hope this blog post cleared some things up & got you thinking about when in 2017 you would like to get your photos taken! Please contact me with any questions. Happy Tuesday, my friends!

XO,
Mary

Photos credit to: Sara Jeanne Photography