cindy cieluch photography . blog

I thought I was done with my blog postings until I got back from Ohio, but I had just onnnnne more I had to share with you.  And the timing couldn’t be better.  When Carrie and John are listing what they’re thankful for this year, it’s pretty obvious what will be at the top of their list.  They’re not just thankful about the new baby who’s about to rock their world, they’re straight up giddy.  They made me tear up when they talked about the excitement they’re feeling, the nursery Charlie will be in, the toys he’ll play with, the books they’ll read to him and the songs they’ll sing to him.  Charlie can’t ask for better parents.

Carrie, John and I got a ton of gorgeous images that morning, but these are the ones that did it for me.  It makes me think of them getting into nesting mode for their new son!  Congratulations you two.  I can’t wait to hold him.

When I heard the rumor about myself a few weeks ago, I thought nothing of it.  Someone asked me when I was moving, but I just laughed and replied, “Ummm…not anytime soon!?!?”  Then last week it got interesting when 3 different people on 3 different occasions asked me, “When are you moving?”  “Hey, I heard you’re moving soon!?!?”  And, “So, there’s this rumor out there that you’re moving.  Is that true???”

The answer is no, no and no.  We are not moving now and do not have future plans to move away from Montana.

That’s the reason behind my first ever sale.  You’ve heard of Moving Sales.  This is an “I’m Not Moving” Sale.  Prints, Canvas Gallery Wraps and Standouts are 20% off until December 1st.  The discount is already activated in your online galleries.  If your gallery is expired, no worries!  I re-released all galleries so you can get in on the goodness.  Just place your order before December 1st and the 20% off discount will automatically be applied to your total.  I’m not sure when I’m having a sale again, so this would be the perfect chance to order your wedding photos, more senior wallets, Christmas gifts for the family and the canvas gallery wraps you’ve been eyeing!  Photos and descriptions of wraps and standouts are below.

And although I’m not moving, I will be out-of-state until Saturday.  I’m taking off for Cincinnati to spend Thanksgiving with my mom, dad, sister Jessica, grandparents, Uncle Steve, Aunt Terri and 3 of my cousins!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  I’m thankful I’m not moving! 

Here are 2 canvas wraps hanging up in my office.  They are 24×36 wraps, which are normally $480.  With the discount, a 24×36 wrap is $384.  No frame or matting necessary.  Just hang it up…and voila!  Instant art for your home!

A canvas wrap is the process of wrapping the printed canvas around a custom made stretcher frame.  The image is wrapped around the frame for a clean, modern look!

Here’s a close up look at the canvas.  It looks like art and doesn’t take away from the photo.  The image is still sharp and vibrant when placed on canvas.

I love that they’re ready to hang!  So easy!

The kissing collage above my couch is made up of standout prints.  The sizes you see here are 16×24, but come as small as 8×10 and go up to HUGE sizes.  They are available in two depths: 3/4″ or 1 1/2.”  Prints are mounted on a thick black lightweight backing that gives a contemporary, finished look to unframed images.  Holes are included on the back of the mounts for easy hanging.  So sweet!

A 24×36 standout of Hannah above my desk.  She’s my niece and makes me smile while I’m working away.

Happy ordering!  If you have any questions, I’ll be in touch when I return on Saturday.

Hello sugarbaby!!!  I love the way a new baby lights up everyone’s faces and puts everyone in a good mood.  It was chilly and muddy, but who really cares when you’re looking at this sweet face?  Thanks Huestis Family for trudging through the mud with me.  I had about 3 inches stuck to the bottom of my boots, but it was worth it!

I usually don’t post any “traditional” photos, but I couldn’t resist this one.  I mean, how cute is Ella?!?!

Hello little bitty teeth.

“I’ll lead the way mommy…”

This is my fave family shot because (although I’m not a mom myself yet), I feel like it’s something every new parent can relate to!

Sometimes during a shoot, I’ll have the parents “hide” so I can have one-on-one time with the baby.  Let’s just say Ella was NOT happy when her parents left!  I yelled for them to come back and this was her reaction when she saw them!

We ran out of sunlight, which ended up being a very good thing.

Do you remember the shoot I did last year on the frozen Teton River with the three kids and the red sled?  Well, I was lucky enough to be able to go back to their home to see how much they’ve grown.  And this time, we got mom and dad in the shoot.   :-)  I don’t think the session was what the parents had in mind (runny noses, strong wind and muddy pants), but everything turned out just how it should — fun, natural and full of lovin’.

What up, pup?

Someone is done with pictures…and someone else can’t get enough…

Are you kidding me with this view?!?!?!

Before I left, I grabbed this quick one of Chloe in the front yard.  I think she’s smiling at me… 

I’m way behind on blogging, but in the last week I’ve had 3 shoots, attended countless meetings, submitted nearly all of my photo orders (took an entire day) and even had my wonderful in-laws here for a visit.  I need a blog break!!! 

Thank you for all of your sweet, touching comments about my photos from my South Korea adventure.  As I mentioned before, I still have tons to share with you.  Here are a few more of my favorites.

The first four were taken at a Buddhist temple.

The hanging tags are people’s wishes and prayers.

Water fountain - Buddhist temple style

In almost every old building, this is what you see when you look up.

One of the most popular sports drinks there is called, “Pocari Sweat.”  Any drink with the word sweat attached to it does not sound appealing, but it works in Korea!!!

This is what traditional Korean meals look like for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Yes, soup and fish for breakfast!  All of the little dishes (panchan) are brought out immediately, followed by fish, soups, meats and white rice.  You just dig into whatever you like and share all of the little bowls with everyone at the table.  Ooooooh - how I miss my Korean meals.

Much more from South Korea on the way soon…

*Overwhelming* is the word that comes to mind when people ask me about my trip.  And I mean overwhelming in the best way possible. Each person, each meal, each tour and each place sparked a new adventure that I have stored away in my “favorite memories” file.

My words and photos won’t do our 10-day trip the justice it deserves.  I honestly don’t know where or how to start explaining what this experience meant to me, my sister Jessica and, of course, my mom.

My mom was born and raised in Namwon - a small city about 5 hours south of Seoul.  The first and last time Jessica and I went to South Korea was 25 years ago (I was in kindergarten), so I consider this my first real trip to South Korea.  I’m not unfamiliar with the Korean culture though.  My mom always made sure it was a huge part of our upbringing.  Our grandparents lived with us for a long time (which is common in Korea).  Soup was constantly bubbling in our kitchen, filling our home with strong (and interesting) aromas.  Kimchi was buried in our backyard (an old-fashioned technique to ferment the cabbage).  My mom wore a traditional Korean dress to my wedding.  And if my mom caught you wearing shoes inside our house, trust me - you would never forget to leave them by the front door again!

So it’s safe to say I’m very familiar and comfortable with the Korean culture.  But when you’re actually in Korea, everything is better because it’s magnified.  The food took me back to when my grandmother was still living and cooking every day.  The landscape was stunning: golden fields of rice, green mountains covered by fog, vibrant flowers in the most unexpected places (hanging next to the highway).  I love how comfortable Koreans are with themselves and around others.  Grown women hold hands while shopping, sight seeing and walking down the street.  You also are required to take off your shoes when walking into most restaurants, which makes the whole meal seem cozy and casual.  OH - and the SHOPPING.  There was enough to clothe the world and the deals were insane.  I didn’t know where to start…and my sister didn’t know how to stop!!!

My mom planned our entire trip.  We told her we didn’t want to do the typical touristy stuff, but thankfully she did incorporate a few popular attractions that were very cool (Buddhist temple, folk village, a national park).  The rest of it was spent learning and seeing what my mom loves about her country and how it shaped her into who she is.

There is tons to show and tell, so I’ll go ahead and stop talking!  Enjoy the photos and the stories that go along with them.  In no particular order, here’s our South Korea experience…

Food is EVERYWHERE.  Octopus, anyone?  Rice cakes?  Fresh fruit, homemade candy, kimchi soup?  There are vendors selling goodies on the streets, in alleys, out of their truck beds.  I wanted to try it all.  OK, not the octopus.  Everything was basically straight from the farm to the street to your mouth.  I call it heaven on earth.

Notice the clash of West meets East.  Only a woman selling dried squid and cups of french fries makes Krispy Kreme fade into the background.

Persimmon is the most popular fruit in South Korea.  It’s sold on every street, in every store and can be seen on most properties.  I love its bright orange color.

Jess might kill me for this one.  But when practically all we did was eat, most of the photos are going to show us stuffing our faces.

This man is an extremely talented artist who can write out any word you wanted in beautiful calligraphy blended with animal figures.  I had him write out my last name + love so I could frame it and hang it up in my house.

Who would’ve ever thunk?  The largest church in the world is in Seoul.  This was taken on a Sunday morning during their late morning service.  I tried getting photos inside, but the ushers (who looked more like bodyguards) stopped me.  We were told each service holds about 10,000 people.

When you turn around, this is the view across from the church.

Is Seoul home to the world’s largest Dunkin’ Donuts too?!?!  There were Dunkin’ Donuts and Starbucks on just about every street.

Hello birdie.

Here’s a sweet, old woman we saw walking down the street with a huge load of veggies.  Her face was an interesting combination of soft skin and deep wrinkles, and her spirit oozed kindness.  I asked my mom (AKA: the translator) to ask the woman if I could take her picture.  The old lady laughed and gave me that look like, “Who…me???”  Then when I got ready to snap the picture, my mom told her in Korean to “Show us your teeth.”  Yeah…my mom has guts!  That lady should’ve slapped us, but instead she cracked up and gave me a hug.

Children in Korea learn English in school, so they would get really excited when they saw Americans.  Most would run up to us to practice their English.  “Hello!”  “How are you?”  What is your name?”  It was adorable.  My mom told us to stop hugging them so much because we would scare their parents. 

Here’s Mr. Shy, Mr. I just picked my nose (no joke - I caught him) and Mr. Please take my picture

When we got swarmed by kids on a field trip, we ran out of short Korean phrases to say so I told Jess to pretend she was kissing the pig statue.  They went crazy with their cell phone cameras!!!  Who knows where those pictures ended up.  I’d love to read their captions.  “Crazy American lady kisses golden hog.”

This is our friend who we now call “Sam Chun” (uncle).  He’s a family friend who took time off from work to drive us all around the country.  We fell in love with him.  Anybody who can put up with the three of us together non-stop for more than a week is THE MAN!

Even monks throw out the peace sign.

I think Jessica was trying to get herself on the blog with this act.  HA!!!!!!!

The first thing we did when we were in Namwon was visit my grandfather’s grave.  It was the most beautiful grave I’d ever seen.  Traditional Korean graves are mounds of grass, dirt and moss that are usually on rural hillsides in scenic locations chosen to bring fortunes to the family.  We brought along his favorite crackers and some whiskey (more Korean traditions).

This is the house my grandparents lived in, after my mom moved away.

The doors in my mom’s childhood neighborhood were amazing.  Almost all of them had this lion door knocker, but each door had its own unique color and texture.

We noticed that Koreans really love to use these English words: HAPPY, SMILE, KISS, LOVE, DREAM.  I think they’re on to something…

We went to a local park in Namwon because my aunt had told my mom that my great-grandfather’s writings were displayed in a building there.  My mom looked all around the building until she spotted it.  The writings talk about the history of the building.

We dressed up in traditional Korean clothing while we toured the park in Namwon.  The colors are extremely bright and the material is super soft and flowy.  I felt like a Korean princess.

I’m not sure what Jessica was looking at, but this expression reminded me of when she was a little kid.  I love you Jess!

MOM: I have always been proud to be half-Korean.  Now, I know exactly why I’m so proud.  Thank you for showing us your country.

Sah-dahm-hahm-nee-dah, amma.  (I love you, mom)  나는 너를 엄마 사랑한다

Believe it or not.  There are a lot more photos and stories from South Korea I’m excited to share with you.  I’ve been really busy with shoots and meetings since I returned, so I’ll post more when I get free time.  Here’s a little tease: the fish market (sting rays), the bathrooms (made us laugh out loud), more food (cups of bugs), where my mom was born (my mom’s first time to see it since she left South Korea), the shopping (insane) and karaoke (hysterical).  Thank you for taking the time to see and learn about my trip.  I recommend South Korea to everyone who gets the opportunity!

Cold weather.  Windy conditions.  Nothing could get this family down for their very FIRST family photo shoot. They just made the most of it, laughed through the wind and trusted me to do whatever I wanted to do.  Case in point.  When I told them I wanted to shoot at the U-Haul around the corner from their house, they didn’t flinch.  I LOVE this family and their windblown hair (click here to see a couple more photos). They said their only goal was to get AT LEAST 1 good photo for a Christmas card.  Well, it’s safe to say we got more than 1 decent one.     I went a little overboard with this posting, but - hey - it’s their first family shoot and they rocked it!

Starting it off at U-Haul with the girls…

I call this her Popeye look.

That day was EXTREMELY windy.  I’m talking gale force winds.  We were afraid their hair would be sticking straight up in every photo, but we lucked out and got some great shots!!!

I love this energetic series.

Happy family = happy dog.  Or is it the other way around? 

It was the beginning of the school year, 2001.  Mary was the “new girl” - a freshman at Conrad High School.  Aaron was a junior and as soon as he laid eyes on Mary - he had to meet her.  Now, 7 years later they’re getting married and planning the rest of their lives together!  Their hometown of Conrad is where they grew up, where they met…and so it’s where we did their engagement session.  We started off at - where else? - the high school and wrapped up at her family’s ranch.

Thank you Mary + Aaron for showing me Conrad…and Aaron - thanks for helping me devour the bag of gummy bears + licorice.  HA!

How cute are they?  I was busy switching my lenses and when I looked up, they were chillin ‘like this…

Conrad is RAD.

When I saw this photo, I thought: “I can’t wait to see her as a bride….”

The light right before the sunset was so yummy!

See you next summer!