Engagement: Hillary and Mike

One of my former roommates, Hillary, asked me to take some engagement photos.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to make the wedding, as we are moving to Charlotte, N.C. I had a great time photographing Hillary and Mike in some new locations around town.

Engagement: Daryl and Tom

My good friend Daryl is getting married in June. She and her fiancée Tom recently moved to Huntsville, Ala., after graduating from Mississippi State, so I haven't been able to see them as much as I used to.

The couple made it back to Starkville last fall for the Egg Bowl. It was great to spend the weekend with them. It was only natural for me to shoot some engagement photos as well.

I'm excited to be one of the bridesmaids and Jarrett and I are looking forward to a fun weekend in Huntsville.

Our Christmas Card Photo

Jarrett has been watching the leaves pile up in the backyard for a few weeks. He keep meaning to rake them, but it's a good thing he didn't. We used the leaf-covered backyard as a backdrop for our Christmas card picture.

At lunchtime today our wonderful neighbor, Agnes, took some portraits of us. So now you get to meet the team behind Hines-Baker Visuals. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Holiday Cards

It's not too late for you to schedule a holiday card appointment with Hines-Baker Visuals. Come to think of it, we haven't taken our photo yet either!

I'm used to shooting sporting events at MSU's Dudy Noble Field. But when the baseball coach's family schedules a portrait shoot with me, I get to shoot portraits there! I started with the Cohen family in the stands and then moved to the field.

I like to have clean backgrounds in our sports pictures. So it was neat to work in different elements of the field that I would normally try to keep out of my pictures.

I had a lot of fun and enjoyed spending time with them. Their daughters are very sweet and their dog - Chance - even tagged along. After getting to know them better, I found out they spent time at UF as well. There are more Gator connections than we thought in Starkville!

For bookings, call (863) 414-3345.

Our New Logo

Nike. Coca-Cola. Target.

Each company has a distinguishable logo, and we are willing to bet that you can picture each one in your mind. They feature unique designs and only use a few colors.

We wanted our own logo to have similar characteristics. Jarrett and I teamed up with Judy Smith, a graphic designer who works in Mississippi, to develop a logo. After looking at a number of prototypes, we took elements from several runners-up and combined them into what we think is a winner.

You might see the design in black, blue or teal, on our business cards or Web site in the future.
The Hines-Baker Visuals logo is copyright 2009 by Jarrett and Kristen Baker.

New Bulldog Friends

The Mullens asked us to shoot some family portraits back in August. The Mullens, of course, are Mississippi State Head Football Coach Dan, his wife Megan and their son Canon.

We photographed Canon alone and Canon with Megan on a Saturday morning. Later that afternoon, we photographed all three together. I was afraid that Canon would be bothered by the camera strobes, but he did excellent.
My arm was still in a sling at the time (she broke it in early July), so Jarrett ended up taking most of the pictures. I was in charge of posing and helping Jarrett see new angles to shoot from.

They were a wonderful family to work with. Our connection to the University of Florida made for great conversation as well. So, Go Gators! and... Go Bulldogs!

Maternity Portraits: Michelle and Tao

One of the challenges of moving to a new city is making friends. The first person I met when I moved to Mississippi was the roommate I was matched with, Michelle.

While Jarrett was still in Florida, Michelle kept me company until he could make the move.

Michelle and her husband Tao are expecting their first child in August.