New Mexico

I am finally recovering from my time out of town and had a few minutes to post a few highlights of our trip to New Mexico. My husband and I love to go camping and at least once a year we plan a big trip usually in May but this year we could only go the last week in February (his spring break) so we decided to head south. Little did we know that much of New Mexico was in the mountains and at a high elevation so even though it is south, it is still cold! But we had a blast anyway and the sun shone everyday which warmed us up a bit :)

We decided to take the train since we had never done that before and it seemed like a relaxing way to travel across country.

So the story starts at Union Station in Chicago.

We arrive in Albuquerque, NM a day later...

and make our way to Bandelier National Monument which is north of Sante Fe. This park was founded because of the Pueblo Ruins that were discovered there. It was very exciting to walk around and feel the energy of that place knowing it has been thousands of years since anyone lived here, yet their ceremonial sites were well preserved.

Brian concentrating on the road while I enjoy the mountain views :)

We stumbled upon a ranch whose name speaks for itself! ;)

We stopped at some more ruins at the Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument which are some of the oldest church sites in the country.

Then off to the White Sands National Monument. I was most excited to come here having heard some friends talk about it a couple of years ago...it was a beautiful and simple place. Mountains on the outsides, white sand everywhere, and a few plants able to withstand the harsh conditions. The Soaptree yucca is mostly bent over from the strong winds that shape and constantly change this environment.

Our last night camping in the Valley of Fire State Park, we had a little shelter and I noticed it broke the sky between last bit of dusk to the night sky above with the first star of the night shining bright.

Our last night before getting back on the train, we decided to spend the day in Sante Fe and then stay at the Ten Thousand Waves Spa which I wish I had pictures of but just before I went to shoot we realized that our train was leaving in 1.5 hours and we were an hour away from the station so needless to say, I didn't have time :( We BARELY made it to the train on time, 5 minutes before departure...and we were running! Train travel is not like a plane, our next train didn't leave until Tuesday! Anyway, that spa was incredible, very open and natural environment and I will definitly be going back. www.tenthousandwaves.com

Back on the train and waking up in Kansas City where my new friends and excellent photographers Tyler Wirken and Becca Spears live...

The train did prove to be a fun and laid back way to travel. You can sit and enjoy the country while you read a book or talk to new people. We met many interesting and fun people on the train and we will definitly do it again.

It was fun to get lost in the outdoors for a bit but it is good to be home again too...

Best,
Kristina

Wedding Photojournalist Contest Winners!

The WPJA (Wedding Photojournalist Association) hosts a photo competition every quarter and it is a great privaledge to compete with the many exceptional photographers from around the world that are part of the WPJA and even more exciting to be recognized for two of my entries!

The first image placed in the top 10 making it an award winner and features Amanda and Brandon whose wedding I am so excited to shoot this September!

SIXTH PLACE: Kristina Carter / Illinois

JUDGES COMMENTS: Again another unusual portrait AND I love it. Really shows the personality of the couple without showing their faces. Love the kicked up foot.

The second one placed in the top 20 and was one of my favorite storytelling images from Dawn and Steve's wedding last September!

NINETEENTH PLACE: Kristina Carter / Illinois

Thank you to my couples for making this job so fun and full of great moments by just being yourselves and allowing me to document that for you!!!

Best,
Kristina

Off to New Mexico...

My mind is spinning from FW5 and I am off to New Mexico today to take a break and figure out where I will take my business from here. Also, for wedding photographers, we have to take vacation in the winter since we are way too busy in the summer :) So off to sunny New Mexico to do some camping and hiking. My husband and I are taking the train from Union Station to Albuquerque, NM and plan to go to a spa for two days and camp for four days then back on the train. I will be back in my office on Monday, March 5th and because I will be roughing it I will not have access to a computer so thank you AGAIN for being patient with me while I recoup from 2006 finally! :)

I will be sure to share my pictures when I return :)

Best,
Kristina

FW5 The Review

I can hardly put into words how amazing this opportunity/experience was for me at this point in my progression as a photographer and business person. The opportunity to work side by side with some of the world's best photographers and learn from their life experience was incredible. The instructors, mentors, and volunteers made themselves completely available to us and were just as excited to help us grow as we were to learn. I was literally up at 6 am and not to bed until 3 am most nights shooting, editing, and critquing so thank you again to everyone for your patience in the longer than usual response time to your emails and phone calls :) I didn't take many photos of the workshop because we had an official photographers so if you are interested you can check out that blog and see what I was up to but I did want to share the photos I took as my assignment. www.fworkshop5.blogspot.com

My assignment was to tell the story of Elizabeth Evans and the Best Friends Fun Farm. Elizabeth teaches agility to her dogs and other people's dogs. She is nationally recognized and her dogs have won many awards and her little Mosely and Kiwi are TV stars featured in commericals and on Barney. The story, as I interrpreted it, was the relationship between Elizabeth and her dogs and her students. Her passion is infectious and she made my job easy :)

Thank you Elizabeth and FW5, I will never forget this experience! There are way too many people to thank individually but the ones who touched me the most know who they are ;)

This is my final presentation...

Best,
Kristina

Off to Texas...

I am off to Texas for a week to continue my education in providing all of you with the best of what I can do. I will be attending the Foundation Workshop and sharpening my storytelling skills by learning from some of the best photojournalists...I will be sure to post some pictures from this week and I am so excited to get a break from this cold ;)

This workshop is very intense so I am thanking all of you in advance for putting up with my slower than normal response time. I will do my best to get back to everyone as quickly as I am able.

Best,
Kristina

Ann and Mike

It was coooold this past Saturday as Ann and Mike tied the knot...but that did not stop them from warming up the nearby forest preserve with their affection and excitement for their big day....I have to give them and the entire bridal party a lot of credit for putting up with me, it really was freezing!!! There were a lot of adorable kids at this wedding and they were just as excited to see Ann and Mike get married as anyone else involved, they did a fantastic job! Congratulations Ann and Mike!!!