Eli's Photography Blog

To Grandma’s House We Go

So last weekend Leslie and I made the trip up to Nashville, TN to visit her Grandparents and have a birthday dinner for her older sister. Buford and Nell are will have been married for 60 years in July and have lived happily in there home for the last 37. While I was there Nell was determined to make sure that I left her home stuffed. I piled my plate full of some wonderful southern home cooking, but she still wanted to make sure that I had all that I could eat and then some, haha. Nell & Buford are wonderful host’s and I’m already looking forward to our next visit!  Also, I can check off #18 from my goals of 2010. I tried a southern red beet for the first time…”different.”

After dinner, we decided to go outside and grab a couple shots out in the snow. Enjoy the photos!

Brick Home

Kissing Grandparents

Grandparent Portrait

Backyard Snow

Tuesday’s with Eli – Roadtrips

I have always loved road trips.  For one thing I do some of my best thinking on the road. All the distractions of the “day to day life” are taken away when you only have one simple task to do…Drive. Because I had dated Leslie for 3 years long distance, I got pretty used to long drives. I really only need a couple things to make me happy on a road trip: Plain sunflower seeds, bottle water, possibly a Rockstar Energy drink, and if it’s a really long drive… an audio book. These simple things make all the difference to me if I’m driving by myself. However, if I have a driving partner, that is something else. This weekend Leslie and I took a roadtrip to Nashville, Tennessee, her hometown. We we going there for her sister’s birthday dinner at her grandparent’ house. The weather was really nice the whole weekend, just a bit chilly, but made for a super pretty drive most the way. I was major excited to listen to my new audiobook “Never Eat Alone” by Keith Ferrazzi, and the 11 hour drive was a perfect fit. I’m glad Leslie didn’t mind either. As long as the narrator has a non-annoying voice we’re good, haha. It was a good book, I definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to get a little better at networking, and not in an artificial way, but in a genuine making friends and lasting connections kinda way. My friend Geoff Duncan recommended it to me, and I’m sure glad he did. Now I say pay it forward!

Here’s a quick little photos Leslie grabbed on the drive. Have a great week!

Eli

Road Trip Sunset

Tuesdays with Eli – Fun in the Snow!

Yesterday I blogged about the engagement portraits I took of Danielle & Jordan on Saturday. I told you guys that if they didn’t want to get out because of the weather, I was gonna be stupid and get out anyways just to shoot some portraits of Leslie & I in the snow. But because Danielle & Jordan were such awesome sports, they wanted to shoot their engagements, plus shoot some of Leslie and I too. I have to say, I really liked the idea because shooting my own portraits with a tripod and remote is not the easiest thing to do. I was a little reluctant at first though, I didn’t want to make my clients work for me, haha, but Leslie didn’t mind. She always wants great shots of the two of us. She thinks that we don’t have enough photos together because I’m always behind the camera.  So, after I did some photos of Danielle and Jordan, I showed them some of the basics on working my camera and they were ready to go! After I looked at a few of their photos, I was shocked. I better watch out, because Danielle & Jordan may be the next dream team photographers to take my job. Leslie was ecstatic, she couldn’t stop talking about how great the photos were. It was a lot of fun shooting in the snowy environment, but it sure was different letting my clients photograph me.
So there you go, my second “Tuesday’s with Eli” post and I’m already getting my clients to shoot for me, haha. Stick around, who knows what what craziness I’ll have next week.

These first few I shot of Leslie before we met up with Danielle & Jordan.

Arkansas Portrait Photographer

Arkansas snow portraits

Eli Murray

Couple Portraits

Snow Portraits

Happy couple

elimurray photography

Seriously aren’t these great. Leave Danielle & Jordan some love and let them know what you think of their skills.

My Proposal Story….(the way I remember it)

This blog is just a bit overdue. I proposed to Leslie Harding, my girlfriend of three years on December 16, 2009. Here is our story.

I guess before I take you right to the proposal night, I’ll give you a little history of about us. December 16th 2006, I was hired to shoot Brad & Rachel Bate’s wedding. I had zero connections with Rachel before I met her, after that night, things changed. Rachel and Brad are both from Arkansas, however not all of their wedding party was. They both attended Harding University in Searcy where Rachel met and became suite-mates with Leslie. Leslie was born in Texas, raised in Nashville Tennessee and only choose Harding because of the name. Just kidding. I think she decided to go to Harding because it’s a great school, either way…I’m sure glad that she did, because if she had gone anywhere else we may have never met each other. Leslie and Rachel were suite-mates for one year, and I guess they hit it off pretty good because when Rachel decided to get married in December, she asked Leslie if she would be a brides maid in her wedding. The story gets better I promise, and like I said I’m sure glad certain things happened the way they did.

So, December 16, 2006 my best friend and I were gearing up for what I thought was just another wedding. The day started off fairly normal, bridal prep, ceremony, formal pictures, and then the reception… this is when the night got a little different for me.  Now when Leslie tells you the story, it started with the rehearsal. She spotted me the day before and in her words “had her eye on me”.  Not to say that I didn’t even see her, but I wasn’t exactly there to pick up chicks. Haha. Those who know my fiance’ know she is a go-getter, and once again. I’m sure glad she is, because if she didn’t take the initiative that night to let me know she was interested, then I may have not written this blog post. Long story short, as the reception went on, Leslie and I talked in between shots. I gave her my number and it went from there. We dated long distance for two and a half years. While she lived in Nashville, then Memphis, and now here in Little Rock.

Proposal night: December 16, 2009 the date we first met 3 years ago. This took a little bit of sly workings because Leslie somehow always seems to know when I’m up to something. I did have help too. My friend Geoff Duncan drove up to take the photos and help with lighting the candles. Flynn Smith who worked inside the Pavilion in the Park helped me get in after hours and let me move some things around for the set up. Brad and Rachel had their reception here in the Pavilion in the Park, so I figured that would be a great place to do it. Geoff and I started setting up the candles and rose pedals while Leslie was still working. After she got off, I left to go pick her up. I told her I wanted to take her out to eat for our “anniversary” but first stop by “our place” for nostalgia and I also told her there was a geocache hidden there and we could try to find that. I planted a geocache with a fake ring, a love note, and a photo of us. After she found it and she was still in a state of confusion I brought her inside where the flowers and candles were ready.  I did my thing and she said Yes of course!

We did a quick little photo shoot with Geoff, and then joined my entire family and some close friends who were waiting for us at dinner. Funny thing was, they thought I was throwing Leslie a surprise birthday party. Haha, so it was a very surprising evening. I guess that’s the way I roll when I propose.  Thanks everyone for reading all of this. Enjoy the photos! Sorry ladies I’m off the market.   -Leslie, I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you. I love you, Eli.

Candles and Roses

Real Proposal

She said yes

Little Rock Proposal

Engagement Ring

Kiss