And to think it started with a newspaper clipping...

Jim & I met in 2002 while working at our last job together.
I did photography/graphic design internally for an insurance company. Primarily covering
event and publication/media photography, as well as employee studio photos. Jim's job at the
time was setting up the sound system for the events, so when I went for test shots, we'd see
each other. Time past and we started seeing each other beyond work. Like many big
companies, within a year, both our job titles changed and it became "just another paycheck."

It wasn't long before I decided to venture out beyond my work to do more with my
creativity. The first wedding I covered was for free. My friend needed a photographer for a
family member's wedding and I decided to try it out. With barely any experience as a wedding
photographer, besides being a guest at one, I said yes. At the time I only did 35mm and gave
all 10 rolls of film to the bride and groom at the end of their day.
I still to this day, never saw the first wedding I captured.
This was hard to go-by of course: did I do well? did they come out ok? I repeatedly asked my
friend about them, only to hear they were great. But I was still totally bummed.

Jim was there to bring it all together, he didn't give up on me...
I still remember him handing me a tiny piece of paper; it was a newspaper classified clipping
from the local penny saver. It said something along the lines of: "Will pay $250 to amateur
photographer to capture our wedding day. College students or little experience needed."

Hesitant and ready to rethink the idea, I still called the listing. Later that week I met
with the couple and showed my photography portfolio. Ironically the deal was to give the
35mm film rolls to them at the end of the day. This time, I got back the results:




Now we are busier than ever and growing every day...
I have my past brides and grooms to thank and hopefully they know how much I appreciate
their trust in me. This is now my full-time job and Jim's part-time second job. He used to
cover the videography (but with equipment expenses we stopped the videos) so now he is
sometimes my assistant at weddings, my digital camera/computer fixer and does all the album
ordering. He has great ideas for photo taking too! (And during my busy season, helps me
with all my emails & phone calls! So don't be surprised if you hear from him instead of me!)
We are working on a studio in our home.

You'll also be seeing one of our newest photographers, Nicole Egan, assisting me at some
of weddings coming up. She hopes to do her own wedding photography business in the
future but is job shadowing with me in the meantime. You may have seen her wedding I
captured in 2007. She is a fun-loving person with a creative flair that you will adore. Her style
is much like mine but she also has her own style and an eye for creative shots. I hope you
enjoy her company at weddings as much as I do. Her email:
lifethroughalens.studio@yahoo.com

I would also like to thank my family in Pennsylvania, whom I love and miss very much.
They all support me no matter what I choose to do. And to Jim, my husband, who believes
that there is no end to my creativity.

~Holly
and Jim :)
About Jim:
Age: 38
Born in Washington State
Grew up in Upstate NY
About Holly:
Age: 29
Born & grew up in Western PA
Moved to Upstate NY in 1998
About JD:
Age: 12
Born & growing up in Upstate NY
This site is dedicated to my
friend Marissa McCauliffe.
Although we lost touch over the
years, she's still in my thoughts.
Whenever I have a bad day, I hear
her saying "Holly, you so need to do
this for other people." She loved my
photography and her oldest son
Calab loved to have his photo taken.
Never skied in our lives but the photo looks
like we did!
Our first adventure photoshoot together. Sept. 2002
October 2007