Ashley McFarlane Photography

Joe + Amber

2012-01-30T14:02:00.008-07:00

a wintry engagement session.

Amber and Joe wanted simple and traditional with a slightly modern twist.

We froze our buns off but, I think we managed to accomplish just that :)

my baby{doll}

2012-01-26T17:48:00.002-07:00

LOVE HER

oh my gosh.. so darn cute!

feelin crafty...

2012-01-21T16:49:00.004-07:00

Look what I made today :)

Got the idea off the ever so fabulous Pinterest

baby birth stats story-board (I dunno know what to call it..)

Can be framed or mounted to a canvas to hang up in baby's room.

Wouldn't this be the perfect gift for a new baby and mommy or for a baby of any age?

I also think it would be super cute as a simple yet, stylish birth announcement.

If you want me to make one for you to give as a gift or for your own baby, I'd love to!

Kord + Alex Wedding

2012-01-20T16:46:00.001-07:00

part one.

Loved this wedding!

Best wishes to Kord and Alex :)

Here With Us

2012-01-18T20:38:00.006-07:00

This story has unquestionably touched my heart.

How could I not share this beautiful video of Tiffany, Jared and their new baby?

This video is the epitome of pure love, unfathomable heartbreak, and amazing faith - and a reminder of what's most important in life.

Jared passed away suddenly on November 30th, 2011 leaving behind his pregnant wife Tiffany, and their 17 month old girl, Reese.

I just can't even comprehend what Tiffany and her families are going through- grieving over the (still fresh) passing of her beloved husband and the joy of welcoming a new spirit, their baby daughter.

I can't even begin to go there with my mind.

I just can't. My heart breaks for Tiffany and her sweet girls.

What a tender, heart-wrenching, emotional, spiritual experience this video is.

I hope it reminds you of what's most important.
The truth that families can be together forever is immensely comforting.

Go kiss, hug and tell your loved ones that you love them :)

Here With Us from camille garrison on Vimeo.

You can read more about Tiffany and Jared HERE.

cake

2012-01-14T10:26:00.003-07:00

I love off camera flash! It bring a whole new dimension to photos and can drastically alter the look and style. So fun! I especially love using OCF when it comes to cake shots since it preserves the ornate detail on the cake. Photographing in extremely dim places gets pretty tricky so I need to get creative and that's where OCF comes in.

As you can see...

Isn't OCF cool?

Sneaky Peek

2012-01-13T15:56:00.001-07:00

I love my job :) How lucky am I to get to do things like this?!

winter

2012-01-11T13:38:00.001-07:00

full post coming soon.

new year, new baby

2012-01-03T12:59:00.001-07:00

Brylin.

A Birth Story

2011-12-30T09:23:00.002-07:00

Brylin Kody.

12/16/11. 6 lbs 14 oz.

This was my very first experience with birth photography and all I can say is WOW!

This was one of the coolest opportunities I've ever had. I seriously loved everything about it. Everything last detail.

My sweet friend Bre allowed me to document every step of the way during the whole birth process.

Breanna works at the NICU and so I guess you could say she kinda had the "hook ups" since I got to photograph the actual live c-section (this was an extremely rare opportunity). I was so excited and nervous!

Thank you to Kody, Bre and their kind families for allowing me to spend this special day with them and to photograph this amazing experience!

An intimate glimpse into a c-section birth.

.... and a preview from Brylin's newborn shoot

Congratulations Bre and Kody :) She is just precious!

love my babe

2011-12-12T11:45:00.003-07:00

Ava and I.

Alex

2011-11-16T18:56:00.001-07:00

aka snow white :)

I can't wait to show you the rest of this bridal session!

Alex is sticking to the special tradition of making the groom wait until the wedding day to see her dress.

So......

You will have to wait until January to see the rest :)

my ava love

2011-11-16T13:34:00.000-07:00

PJ + Jacee

2011-11-15T09:37:00.000-07:00

wedding part I.

Derek + Paige

2011-11-14T17:34:00.005-07:00

my cute sister-in-law and her cute friend! Both seventeen and in their junior year at Weber high :)

love.

2011-11-01T14:19:00.002-06:00

Jacee

2011-10-25T23:28:00.000-06:00

Bridals. I've been a total blog slacker lately ... Jacee was married over a month ago and here I am finally getting around to posting her bridal session. Enjoy!

a birth story

2011-10-18T21:17:00.004-06:00

{Ava Pearl} October 12, 2010.

One of the happiest (and scariest) days of my life. Such a whirlwind and so special.

I never shared with you Ava's birth photos. They are very dear to my heart.

My baby just turned one year old. Seriously? Where did that time go?!

Here's what went down one year ago...

So I've never shared the whole story with anyone but family and close friends. I posted Ava's birth story only on my personal blog and wanted to keep it private. Although these are my personal and intimate thoughts, I decided that I want to share my (Ava's) story because the birth of a new baby is truly special and such a miracle :)

Here goes ...

Blog post from Friday, October 29, 2010

First off, my due date was October 5th. I had high hopes at my last appointment with Dr. Johansson on October 4th but, I was still not even dilated to a one! She had told me 4 weeks prior that if I was dilated to at least a one, we could induce labor. She then told us that if the baby doesn't come by Monday, October 11th, then head on over to the hospital and we'll have this baby! I'll admit I was frustrated when I heard the baby was most likely not going to come on October 5th or within the next few days to follow. However, with an exact end date in sight, I was somewhat satisfied (but still annoyed that I was going way over my due date).

* * *

October 11th, 7:58 pm:

Vaughn and I arrive at McKay-Dee hospital ready to get this show on the road.
I had no idea that nearly 27 long hours later, Ava would finally make her appearance into the world.

The nurse walked us to our room, 4510 and we settled in. First, the nurse put the IV in the top of my hand and that was very painful for me, even more so than other things.
They gave me a pill to help soften the cervix. This had to be done before they could start Pitocin (a med that helps induce labor).

In the meantime, my awesome family all came up to the hospital to keep us company. It was nice to have some distractions. I could only have ice and suckers to eat and I didn't really like the suckers they had at the hospital so everyone went to the store to get me some jolly ranchers. I was very grateful for those!

Around midnight, Vaughn and I decided we wanted to try and get some sleep. So my family left and then it was just us. Poor Vaughn had to try and get some sleep on those uncomfortable couch bed things and I in those terrible hospital beds. Needless to say there was not much shut eye going on that night. I got 2 hours sleep the whole night, Vaughn maybe 4 or 5.

October 12th, 6:30 am:

While we were still half asleep, Julia (Dr. Johansson) arrives. I had still not yet dilated to a one and she told me she was going to break my water. What?! I couldn't believe it, finally some progress! Five seconds later, she was all done. Vaughn was still trying to wake up, "Wait, did she just break your water?". It all happened so fast. "Yes, she did", I told him.
It's a crazy, weird feeling to have your water broken, especially afterward. I wanted to get up and get ready for the day and as soon as I did that, well let's just say I could not believe how much water there really is in there! Wow!

October 12th, 11:30 am:

I had been experiencing mild contractions for several hours by now, bad cramping that felt like "that time of the month". The bed was so uncomfortable after that many hours so I sat in a chair and walked around during labor instead. I was dilated to a 2 by this point and pretty disappointed that my body was seeming to fight this inducing process. My mom came around 1:00 pm to join us, then Kyr and Zac followed later at about 4:00 pm. I finally caved in and asked for the epidural at about 2:00 pm. Ah, sweet relief! It wasn't nearly as bad or as scary as I thought it might be. Just a bit strange as I felt my lower half go numb. I also couldn't move legs at all, that was definitely crazy! If I wanted to turn in bed, I had to have Vaughn or the nurse move my legs for me.

Meanwhile, we all watched a movie, some T.V. and chatted while we waited and waited and waited.
Slow, very slow progress. I finally arrived to the dilation of a six and held on that for hours.
Around 8:30 pm I had slowly progressed to an 8.

October 12th, 10:01 pm:

I had been feeling a slight pressure and urge to push for a while and asked the nurse to come check me.
She did and told me "You're a ten!", let's have this baby girl! I couldn't believe what I just heard, is this really happening? It seemed as though this moment would never come and finally, after so much waiting, preparation and more waiting, it was definitely happening!

I got nervous and a little scared at this point. Vaughn and I wanted to have a few moments alone before we became parents for the first time.

It was a very special few moments we shared in room 4510..

My amazing nurse, Lisa was the absolute best. She (and my sweet Vaughn) helped me every step of the way and was there directing me on what to do until Julia arrived. Vaughn was quite the labor coach I must add, very encouraging.

I was apprehensive about the delivery process and pushing and didn't quite know what to expect. It was actually a neat, peaceful experience and I was a lot more calm and relaxed than I had anticipated.

I pushed for about 40 minutes and then at 10:42 pm, our miracle, little tiny Ava was born!

They immediately put her on my chest, she was crying as I held her and Vaughn was right there saying how cute she was. What a special gift straight from heaven!
I couldn't really get a good look at her since she was so close to me but, I was just so happy to finally hold her in my arms. The delivery was a breeze compared to what happened next.

October 12th, 10:50 pm:
(warning, the following is a bit graphic. reader discretion is advised)

The worst, most painful and traumatic 15 minutes of my life happened immediately following Ava's birth.

Apparently the placenta had prematurely aged and was coming in pieces (it's normally supposed to be fully intact, smooth and in one piece). Julia was even puzzled by it and her and the nurses couldn't figure out what was going on at first. They seemed as worried as I was and that really scared me. Turns out, I had a badly calcified placenta. These are rare, in fact, the nurse told my mom that in the 5 years she's practiced at the hospital, she's only seen it twice.

Parts of the placenta were stuck in my uterus and they had to get it out or it could cause infection. I had to have a D and C. The D stands for dilation, which means enlarging and the C stands for curettage which means scraping. It's much more commonly used following miscarriages or abortions in cases where the uterus fails to fully empty its content. They had to push on my stomach (extremely hard and it was scream-out-loud painful) and scrape out the remaining parts of the placenta with a sharp, spoon thing. I was screaming and crying out in pain. It was more than I could handle and the pain was 10 times worse than the kidney stones I had 3 months ago.

Vaughn was videotaping Ava as she was getting weighed and examined but, he had to turn it off because I was screaming and crying. He didn't want that part remembered for my sake.

I had an epidural but, by this point it had started to wear off because I felt everything. It was seriously so horrible. They gave me more medication during the procedure to try and lessen the pain but that backfired and caused me to become extremely nauseous and I threw up. Over and over. I found out after that the protocol during this procedure is that women are put under anesthesia so they are asleep the entire time. I was fully awake and by then the anesthesia was only working for my legs. Anyway, I kept throwing up every 10 minutes after that for about 2 hours.

My body went into shock and I was shaking uncontrollably. I was freezing cold and literally had 20 blankets on me. I felt terrible and so neglectful as her mommy since I was unable to hold Ava until several hours after she was born. I just couldn't though, I was so out of it. Poor Vaughn, was beside himself and worried sick about me. He later told me he had never seen me act like that or be in that much pain. I told him that's because I hadn't.

I also told Vaughn that I don't even want to think about another baby for at least 3 years. Hopefully by then the traumatic events will have faded :)

After all was said and done though, it was worth it to have our sweet little Ava in our arms. We are so thankful that our Heavenly Father is trusting us to raise this sweet, amazing baby girl.

We love her more each day!

and now, my beautiful baby one year later...

We love you Ava, you have brought even more joy and happiness into our lives!

Kord + Alex

2011-10-05T12:22:00.004-06:00

Engagements

Fun fact:

Most of these images (with the exception of the black & white) are straight out of camera :)

Jake + Amy

2011-10-03T14:19:00.002-06:00

Full Wedding Post

The Sagendorf's

2011-09-30T13:15:00.001-06:00

My aunt, uncle and cute cousins :)

I had to throw these fun ones in here!

coming soon

2011-09-13T11:08:00.002-06:00

Jake + Amy

2011-09-02T12:46:00.004-06:00

Just a little preview.
More coming soon!

Ipod DJ Event Rental

2011-08-11T14:21:00.002-06:00

Perfect for weddings!

Now booking for weddings, call today!

jacee + pj

2011-08-10T12:58:00.018-06:00

engagements.

What more can I say about these two? So easy to photograph and so much fun!

The McKay's

2011-08-08T14:17:00.005-06:00

My sis-in-law and her adorable family. Love these guys!

And just because it's too sweet ...

cousins born exactly one week apart

Rowan + Ava

Sven + Savannah

2011-08-03T12:07:00.103-06:00

Wedding.

I had so much fun with these guys!

Thank you Sven and Savannah for allowing me to capture your amazing day :)

July 15th, 2008

2011-07-22T16:45:00.031-06:00

Was and always will be my favorite day of the year!

Vaughn has made me the HAPPIEST girl in the whole world.

I'm so blessed to be able to share forever and eternity with him :)

Since my cute honey and I just celebrated our 3rd anniversary,
I thought it would be fun to share our awesome, beautiful, amazing wedding day!

Lovely Details

2011-07-12T11:59:00.003-06:00

I can't wait to show you this wedding!

I was smitten with all the creative detail and love thoughts that went into this special day.

here's a pretty little preview:

Ashley

2011-07-05T22:09:00.003-06:00

maternity.

i love her.

2011-06-28T16:51:00.029-06:00

Maybe I occasionally go a bit overboard taking photos of my sweet little doll.

I think this photo is proof :

Joel + Brittney

2011-06-27T16:20:00.000-06:00

Wedding.

This was such a fun wedding and the weather was gorgeous for March.

Both families are so so sweet, it was a joy to photograph their special day!

Savannah

2011-06-22T10:18:00.014-06:00

Bridals. I just love the simplicity, happiness and sunny feel to these images, enjoy!

A bit sound of music-ish? Awesome.

Brian + Shenole

2011-06-14T21:51:00.005-06:00

Wedding.

Marcus + McKenzie

2011-05-27T17:19:00.007-06:00

Wedding.

The Many Faces

2011-05-23T13:25:00.005-06:00

of Ava.

She makes me laugh!

I just can't get enough of my sweet baby. Love her.

Lauren

2011-05-18T17:21:00.001-06:00

Marcus + McKenzie

2011-04-28T15:28:00.061-06:00

Bridals.

Just for the record, it's supposed to say M loves M .. my mom saw it and said mom? Ha!

Marcus + McKenzie

2011-04-22T17:05:00.000-06:00

just a peek.

More to come!

happy easter

2011-04-21T17:45:00.002-06:00

my sweet little baby chick :)

I Do Adore

2011-04-07T16:06:00.005-06:00

love this song.

it's such a sweet, simple, fun song and it makes me think of my husband and how much I adore him :)

such perfect editing music. I recently bought Anchor and I LOVE the entire cd, so good!

love this one too.

Kyree + Addie

2011-04-01T16:11:00.001-06:00

Marcus + McKenzie

2011-03-28T21:22:00.001-06:00

Engagements.

lovin this new song!

2011-03-24T11:50:00.001-06:00

Shenole

2011-03-23T22:02:00.002-06:00

details.

Out of Office

2011-03-11T08:00:00.016-07:00

We are off to 70 degree weather, lucky us!

I will be out of town from 3/11-3/16

All emails and phone calls will be returned on March 17th.

I just wanna eat her up.

2011-03-09T15:04:00.004-07:00

My darling little Ava.

Oh how I love her!

Tyson + Whitney

2011-03-02T22:42:00.003-07:00

Engagements.

Brittney

2011-02-24T10:50:00.006-07:00

Bridals.

Happy Love Day.

2011-02-14T19:01:00.006-07:00

My beautiful little sweetheart
just turned 4 months old!

Such a doll face.

and look at the surprise I came home to...

Vaughn is for sure the sweetest boy ever.

He did all of this on his own, every little detail was perfect. So thoughtful and romantic :)

Sigh.. I'm so crazy about him.

Kody + Bre

2011-02-02T04:32:00.003-07:00

Part II

New 2011 Bridal Collection

2011-02-01T11:45:00.019-07:00

accessories by yours truly.

I'm excited to finally announce the launch of my new collection of wedding hair accessories!

Each piece is designed by me, custom made and one-of-a-kind. They look even more lovely in person and in your hair.

View and shop below:

Gorgeous maribou and ostrich feathers adorn this timeless, romantic design embellished with a vintage pearl brooch.
Measures approximately 4 inches in length and secures to hair with your choice of a silver alligator clip or hair comb.

$28.00

Two single rolled white rosette flowers with a pearl beaded center, nestled atop white ostrich feathers.
Measures approximately 5.5 inches in length and secures to hair with your choice of a silver alligator clip or hair comb.

$24.00

This gorgeous bridal headband features white maribou feathers and a vintage jeweled accent resting upon a single white rosette flower.
Fastened to a thin, comfortable metal headband.

$20.00

P.S. I need to find a lovely gal to model my hair pieces for me, anyone interested?

This will give you a better idea of how my hair pieces look.
My designs are even more beautiful in person, if you are interested in viewing them, give me a call, 801.644.4179.

More designs to come!

Andee + Jose

2011-01-25T09:16:00.003-07:00

Wedding Day.

It may look nice and warm but, it was freeeeeezing!

Adelynn

2011-01-24T17:56:00.004-07:00

6 months.

Winter Love

2011-01-19T08:08:00.001-07:00

Kody + Bre.

Yesterday was my first official session back after being on maternity leave.

Oh how I've missed my work and so excited for all my upcoming weddings!

P.S. The hair piece Bre is wearing was made by me!
I'm planning on selling these unique wedding hair pieces so if you're interested, email me: ashleyjmcfarlane@gmail.com

(More to come from this session!)

Giveaway WINNER!!

2011-01-17T11:13:00.009-07:00

Wow! First off, thank you so much to everyone who entered, I really appreciate it!

I very much wish I could give everyone who entered a free session but, unfortunately that's not very realistic.

Please don't be sad if you didn't win, there's Good news ..

*I will be doing one more giveaway for the year during late spring/early summer so check back soon!

P.S. I used the random number generator www.random.org to pick the winner for me.

and the winner
of the free session
is...

# 24

Hooray for Whitney!!

Please contact me by 1/19/11 to schedule your session.

801.644.4179 or ashleyjmcfarlane@gmail.com

(Another winner will be chosen if I don't hear from you, so hurry and contact me!)

Thanks again everyone!

2011 Giveaway!

2011-01-11T13:01:00.003-07:00

Thought I'd start the new year off with something fabulous...

a chance to win a free photo shoot with me!

The winner may choose one of the following sessions: family, children/babies, engagements or bridals/groomals.
Giveaway includes 10 edited images on cd.

You can also comment and nominate a friend or loved one that you feel deserves a free photo shoot.

To enter the giveaway, simply follow these steps:

1. Leave a comment here on my blog with your name.

2. If you have a blog or a Facebook account, post a link to my blog.

Entries must be received by midnight on Sunday, January 16th.

The winner will be announced the following morning.

Good Luck!!!

the veil shot

2011-01-07T13:52:00.002-07:00

my little pixie pearl

2011-01-03T12:51:00.005-07:00

love her

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T18:04:00.004-07:00

I really miss this...

2010-12-08T16:13:00.002-07:00

warm weather.

and just because.

My little miss Ava who happens to be 8 weeks old already!

Love her!

Isn't it Romantic?

2010-11-17T13:56:00.005-07:00

Bathtime

2010-11-17T10:33:00.002-07:00

She melts my heart!

Design Inspiration

2010-11-15T11:42:00.001-07:00

Just a few of the pretty cakes I've photographed at weddings.
With all the Ava posts lately, I thought I would mix things up a bit and share something to do with weddings!

My Sweet Ava

2010-11-08T19:10:00.005-07:00

Birth Announcement.
Isn't it lovely?

She's even more lovely though!

Ava Pearl

2010-10-27T15:14:00.005-06:00

14 days old. Goodness, we love our sweet girl.

Isn't she beautiful? I sure think so!

She's Here!!!

2010-10-20T15:22:00.007-06:00

Ava Pearl McFarlane

October 12th, 2010

6 lbs 9 oz * 19 1/2 inches

We are sooo in love with our sweet adorable girl!

Grayce.Easton.Ella

2010-10-07T21:17:00.001-06:00

My nieces and nephew: too cute for words.

Huff Children

2010-10-04T16:15:00.005-06:00

Portraits.

Bridal Favorites.

2010-09-30T14:36:00.007-06:00

Me and my handsome husband.

2010-09-27T19:16:00.005-06:00

Maternity shoot.

Taken at 39 weeks pregnant

7 days until my due date!