family fun

so here's what WE did on this not-really-very-warm day:

with tremendous thanks to Annika for the unwavering patience.

there are perhaps no children more difficult for a photographer than well....photographer's children.

but whew! - we did it guys

good work, team! ~ amy

the kindness of friends in The District

with the win our hearts  |  win your wedding contest launch, mailings went out to family + friends and at this point we've approached a few of our favorite area merchants, too.  

just wanting to shout out a big THANK YOU SO MUCH! for the warm and immediate response to the following businesses for making contest info available to their clients....

In downtown Columbia (aka "the district")

Salon Nefisa*

The Butterfly Tattoo  [presents with presence!]

Kent's Floral Gallery + Gifts

Dryer's Shoe Store

The Upper Crust*

and in our favorite little town of Rocheport, thank you, thank you:

School House B+B*

and the fabulous Rocheport General Store

take a peek at the asterisked websites [*] noted above ~ all had major "site makeovers" in the past 6 months and now include lots of SilverBox images ~ we're HONORED to be part of such things so cool:

so it seems we're not the only ones giving away a wedding!

just saw this:

Sebasco Harbor Resort is giving away a 2009 destination wedding package valued at $25,000. The resort has named their contest The Pure Maine Wedding Giveaway and it looks like a contest worth winning. For this one, your contest entry has to be a video...

Interested couples must submit a brief video essay introducing who they are, how they met, and why they would like to win a Pure Maine Wedding. Winners will be chosen based on entrants' stories and their desire to experience Pure Maine.

The package doesn't, however, include a wedding photographer, and well, we know some good people ;)

win our hearts | win your wedding . . . the BIG QUESTION

but of course.......yes, yes, YES!

You can CERTAINLY NOMINATE someone!

Sorry if we didn't make that clear.

To clarify: let's say you're NOT getting married but know someone fabulous who is...your choices are to:

a. pass along the win our hearts | win your wedding information;

b. nominate them yourself by emailing us the couple's picture and story, including your thoughts on why they deserve free wedding photography and fabulous credit from Originals Paper Art; or

c. both " a " AND " b "

We really are hoping to find a couple for whom this gift makes such a difference . . .

Am finding myself in a bit of a "must confess" mode....so, here goes:

photography, primarily wedding photography, is how kim and i make a living.

Now we're both very lucky...

both of us are married to the greatest of husbands; husbands who have good jobs and who are very good at what they do. AND both kim + david and paul + myself have healthy, filled-with-energy kids...a neighborhood we love...and friends both near and far.

but here's the thing: photography is a critical part of our families' livelihood.

ok, i'll just cut to the chase:

SilverBox photo coverage is not within every couple's budget.

we get that.

and we hate that that's the reality (but we have to make a living at this or we have to get other jobs instead...)

so we've made tough choices:

-we limit our number of clients so that we can make sure SilverBox clients get the kind of coverage, service, and artistry they deserve and that we're proud to offer (and to make sure we've carved out meaningful time for our families);

-we don't cut any corners in service or quality...not with equipment, not with time, not with the technical know-how part; not with post processing; certainly not with our proofing; and Queensberry Albums, for example, are arguably, the best in the world.

tough choices because of the many consequences and time commitments, but we stand by the choices we've made....

The only time we feel a bit of regret is when we meet a Most Terrific Couple who loves what we do and is such a good fit on every front.....except for the budget one.

We've done pro bono work for non-profits. among other stuff, kim has wonderful images of kids + teachers learning/teaching/growing at Rock Bridge High School (hey, kim, maybe we should POST those up!) and it was so fun for me to create BIG canvas prints for The Crossing to hang in their amazing Kid's Area.

maybe in a small way presenting a wedding photography package to really great couple does some good. we hope so! we continue to LOVE reading the stories coming our way...whew, what ramble; in sum (oh, yeah THIS is where i was going with all of this)

WIN YOUR WEDDING SUBMISSIONS CAN ABSOLUTELY BE ABOUT SOMEONE ELSE....nominate away. and thanks!!! both for thinking of this and for helping us to remember to clarify....

is it a THREE-DAY weekend for YOU?
warmly,
amy enderle

PS - first in PICTURES, then in WORDS from book The Geography of Bliss (2008; Eric Weiner) or maybe a combination of the two.....

 just finished reading The Geography of Bliss (2008; Eric Weiner).

**because i'm a big believer in good books being CIRCULATED rather than SHELVED, the first person who sends me their mailing address with an "i want that book!" message can go out + wait by their mailbox...it's on the way. I LOVE PASSING ON A GOOD BOOK. (physically as well as just in a "recommendation" sense.) 

Weiner offers lots of good insights, interesting journeys...but 2 of my favorites follow; both found in the epilogue where the author sort of reflects and summarizes.....in his words:

"Our happiness is completely and utterly intertwined with other people: family and friends and neighbors and the woman you hardly notice who cleans your office. Happiness is not a noun or verb. It's a conjunction. Connective tissue." ~ Weiner, The Geography of Bliss, pg 325

"It's worth considering carbon. We wouldn't be here without it. 

Carbon is the basis of all life, happy and otherwise. 

Carbon is also a chameleon atom. 

Assemble it one way ~ in tight, interlocking rows ~ and you have a diamond. 

Assemble it another way ~ a disorganized jumble ~ and you have a handful of soot. 

The arranging makes all the difference."

~ Weiner, The Geography of Bliss, pg 322

SignS of the Times this Valentine's Day

I put my iPhone to work today!
(Well, except for this first image....grabbed the 5D with the 85 attached right out of the camera bag as we were almost ready to walk out the door. There was just something about how proud Zoe looked, all bundled up with arms stretching around oversized Valentine's Box.) Remember making these?
Kids at school; soo perfect time to catch up with my stupendous business partner downtown.

And Downtown was ABUZZ with Valentine Activity.

UpperCrust had sights set on serving LOTS of decadent desserts tonight and LOOK! at this slightly familiar looking image!!!!

SilverBox shot as Banner!

Whoa, that's fun! And then sitting down at table; a) a-ha a SilverBox table tent image, too! AND b) last month's Inside Columbia magazine was there with LOOK! Melanie + Darrin's wedding featured!

Remember reading about this wedding....chairs in a circle, front row seat for everyone! and THEN a "next day" session complete with a dip in the creek.

[Kim, you shot sooo many fabulous pictures this past wedding season; but oh these jump out and grab me everytime!]

THEN, later this morning, my fabulous mom came into town and we went over to Miller's (aka Miller's Professional Imaging; aka Best Professional Photo Printing Lab in the country!) where we judged their annual Chili-Cook-Off! Tough (but yummy!) decisions! (*note: Millers is a professional lab, but YOU, TOO can have access to their expertise through www.mpix.com...if you upload your own photos to print them ~ a VERY good idea, try mpix.com; we're just sure you won't be disappointed)

Then my sweet mom and I rushed back to my place to make the caramel apples for elementary school parties and the question-gathering began! Had this idea of playing "are you smarter than a THIRD grader?" during class party this afternoon and hooray! - it was a hit!! Two different moms-of-3rd-graders learned upon entering the classroom that they would be our contestants! Both Ms. King and Ms. Murray were impressive contestants, and honestly I don't know if the kids would have been any more excited if there was actually money to give away. Oh my gosh they were ecstatic! My mom was stationed by the CD player hitting the Smarter Than a 5th Grader theme song on cue to add to the drama....no pictures to share, but whoa! good times had by all!

And LASTLY...as I ran down to Tycho's (1st grade) School Valentine's Day Party, the snowmen the 1st graders had created and taped up in the hall caught my eye...perhaps only a Mom (or Mom married to Chiefs fan) would immediately recognize that her son crafted his snowman as yep, a Chief's fan at a snowy game.....even holding up a #1 with his snowy mitten. (Tycho AND Paul actually are aware of the team's record this season, but those kinds of details cease to matter...it's some kind of #1 because?? they're the best? type of thing?.....) Another fun observation. Even without reading artist names, can you pick up the snowWOMEN found below. How cute is that! The girls made sure their snow people dressed in crowns and earrings and were adorned in hearts.
Fun times, indeed!

~amy

doing VERY COOL things with paper

this is 2 part, sharing.

the FIRST . . .  oh we're SO PROUD OF OUR FRIEND BROOKE GOANS of Originals Paper Art. 

Brooke makes the Most Amazing things...out of PAPER and NOW; she has joined the Blogging World. 

And LOOK Brooke's including snapshots and her DESIGNS + creations!

like THIS; the way she presented Christmas Gift Cards! -- whoa:

Take a look at SnapShots from the Design Studio and send her a warm hello! 

AND, the SECOND . . .

found this in my inbox!

the Hirshhorn was perhaps OUR FAVORITE excursions when last year Avery and I spent her 13th b-day in DC (this links to my favorite ever slideshow!)  

with coolest of friends Jena + Brian (who have since relocated to Portland; whoo-hoo, more friends in fabulous places = MUST visit) and Tracey + Mark (who have since bought a different cool old house in the DC area I can't wait to see; again = MUST VISIT)

the Hirshhorn challenge:  

one piece of paper; what can you do with it??? 

a few of my favorites below:

CORRECTED TO READ:  oops; not finding validation of this being a Hirshhorn contest; instead here is where you can find more:

A few days ago our friend & neighbor, Carlynn Trout, called needing some portraits.

"No problem," we said, "what's the occasion?"
And here was Carlynn's good news:
a play she wrote, LITTLE GIRL TENANT, was selected by the 2008 Kansas City Women's Playwriting Festival. Yahoooo!!!

This means her play will be presented at the Festival from March 7 through March 16 at the Just Off Broadway Theater, 3051 Central in Kansas City, Missouri.

Wanna go see it?! Here's what you need to know. Tickets are $15.
Showtimes are:
March 7, 8, 14, and 15 ~ 8:00 PM
March 9 and 16 ~ 3:00 PM
March 13 ~ 7:30 PM
plus an industry appreciation night on March 10 with a 7:3o PM curtain.


WAY TO GO, Carlynn; we are SO excited for you! And wouldn't it be great if a few Silver Lining blog fans read this entry and headed over to the performance?! See you there...

~kim & amy