Sweet Newborn

I had the privilege of photographing this sweet baby girl when she was just 12 days old.

And since I was lucky enough to get my knitting kit from Santa, I made her a baby cocoon.


So cute with that little, bitty finger.


Don't you just want to eat her cheeks?

When I made her hat, I thought it would also be fun to make a matching diaper cover. (I am slightly obsessed with knitting since Christmas, everyone is getting a hat whether they like it or not).


Oh yeah, that's a smile.

And yes, she has parents! Carrie is the sister of one of my 2009 brides. Congratulations on your new little bundle of joy, she is an angel! Can't wait to see you in June!


I offer lifestyle sessions as well as newborn and portrait sessions through Life by Heather. I did not accept many sessions in the last year or so because I was busy growing my own family. But now that Evan is one, I think I'd like to do more of these sessions, they are so much fun!

Life by Heather - Pittsburgh Newborn Photographer

Sasha & Denise

I had the privilege of attending a wedding last weekend as a guest! My cousin Sasha was married in his hometown of Meadville (well, technically he's from Saegertown), I posted many more images here.

I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas!


PS. I will be posting more about the Winter White Wedding drawing at the Priory as soon as I have all of the info for the winners!

Winter White Wedding

I am thrilled to announce that I have teamed up with the wonderful people at Pittsburgh's Grand Hall at the Priory to photograph the recipient of their Winter White Wedding! The Priory is one of my favorite venues to photograph, not only because it's gorgeous, but because the staff is exceptionally helpful and attentive.


When I heard that they were giving away a wedding for military couple in honor of our servicemen and women, I immediately contacted them to offer my services. You may remember this post from Veteran's Day 2006 when I offered to photograph a wedding of military personnel at no charge. As a result, in 2007 I photographed the weddings of Katie and Errol and Aidan and Michael.

For more information, or to apply, please visit the Priory's website. The deadline is 12/15/08 and I will be attending the drawing which will be held on 12/17/08.

Craig and I

I was thrilled that Cory Ann was able to take pictures of just Craig and I, it's been so long since we've had a nice picture together. I think this one is my favorite.

I need to ask my Mom what year the barn was built, but it is definitely old. As kids, my many cousins and I had great fun playing in and around the barn.



Wait, I think this one might be my favorite. I am crazy about this man!


FYI - I apologize if I have not responded to your email recently. The great stomach virus of 2008 was passed around this family over the last several days and we are still trying to recover.

Our Family

When Cory Ann was visiting in October, she was kind enough to shoot our family for our Christmas cards. As every photographer knows, you always get to your personal images last, which is why I'm just now posting these.


I had Evan (we call him boy boy) dressed up a like a cowboy. Craig is originally from Texas and I wanted to pay homage to his homeland. There were cowboy/rodeo graphics on his shirt, and his sweater actually said Cowboy. So cute.

Ahh, look at my big girl! She is so sweet.



We shot in/around my grandparents barn, which is a very special place for us. I will be posting more images in the next few days.

Canon 40D for Sale

Canon 40D - Includes box, manuals, battery w/charger and strap. Excellent condition. Purchased for $1,218, asking $900, plus shipping and sales tax.

I used it for a few weddings as back-ups until I realized that I couldn't live without the full frame.

You can click here to purchase, or email me with any questions.
heather@weddingsbyheather.com

DQ Quikeys

**Geek alert**

I love technology, gadgets, gear, computer equipment, etc. I am also really into continuous improvement in regards to my workflow. My photographer friends refer to me as the queen of workflow because it is something that I take great pride in.

I track every detail of my workflow diligently and during the off season I analyze where I can improve my quality and increase efficiency.

A few years ago I picked up the X-Keys Professional module because I determined that every time I had to move my hand using the mouse I was losing seconds. The X-Keys allowed me to program my most used actions into the device so that I could use my left hand to execute actions, while my right hand would use my Wacom for edits. Very slick.

I really thought I had it going on... until I met Dave and Quinn. I am not too big to admit that they out-geeked me, and that is pretty hard to do. LOL


They developed the Quikeys system to drastically improve efficiency. The device itself has three layers, one of which is programmed for RAW conversion in Lightroom, the second for retouching, and the third for album design. I was blown away by their initial release in early 2007 because I had programmed my X-Keys and I know the effort that they put into making it a photographers dream.

It's worth repeating: I WAS BLOWN AWAY.

I can say, without hesitation, that it changed my life. Ask anyone who has spent any time watching me edit a wedding and they will attest to the quality and speed with which I can edit. Based on my calculations, I estimate that it has saved me 52 days in 2008 (and I believe that estimate to be conservative). FIFTY TWO days to spend time with my family or allocate my time working on my business, rather than in my business.

If you are a photographer spending too much time on your computer, I implore you to check out their website, it will change your life.

http://www.dqstudios.com/dqquikeys/

And make sure that you check out their blog as well, these two are rock stars! I love them!
http://dqstudios.com/quikeys/blog/

Sarah & Jordan

Sarah and Jordan contacted me a few months ago to schedule a private consultation as they are starting their own photography business. I had the pleasure of documenting Sarah and Jordan's wedding last September, you can click here to view their wedding images, and click here to view their website.

Anyway, we had a great time catching up and talking shop. They are an easy, fun couple to be around, which makes them perfect photographers!

They are expecting their first child, so exciting!

Leah Rose

I had so much fun shooting Leah's lifestyle session last week, look at these eyes!




It was another beautiful fall day, so we spent some time outside.


So expressive!



She was giving me her leaf. Sweet girl.

Oh yes, Leah did have her parents with her, this is Mark and Katie. They are very special clients, I documented their wedding in October 2005 and shot Katie's maternity session last year. Click here to see her maternity images, she looked AMAZING when she was pregnant.



This is one lucky little girl.

Because her parents are crazy about her.





We went inside for an outfit change and I liked the light in the kitchen.

And her outfit was adorable!

"Look Miss Heather, I can make silly faces!"

"Ok, I'll take a nice one for my mom."

See ya later Leah, until next time!

Julie & Eric - Slideshow

Please click on the play button in the lower left corner to view the slideshow.

Maggie & Dustin - Engagement

I met Maggie and Dustin earlier this year at Kristie and Mike's wedding. We met at Greenmoor Common Equestrian Center where Maggie's horse, Jenny, lives.



We were delightfully surprised that some of the trees still had their pretty leaves!

Dustin is in the military and they hadn't seen each other for three months.

And this is Jenny! She was busy playing, but I wanted to show her beautiful colors. The fabulous Kristie was there earlier in the day and groomed Jenny for the photographs.

This is Kristie's horse, Cody. She tells me that he is a handful, but wonderful!



Maggie is such a wonderful person, she has an infectious personality.

Oh man, look at all of those leaves! It was wonderful!

This is one of Maggie's favorite trails to ride Jenny.

BTW, fallen pine needles are very slippery.




Jenny was more interested in eating than getting her picture taken... until...

She saw her Maggie giving someone else some love.

Look at that sky, we were so lucky that the sun broke through the clouds momentarily.


Maggie and Dustin will be getting married at Springwood
next June and I can't wait!