Thankful Thursday: Whitney Frank

We brewed Witch's Stew in a tree pot, we roller skated and conquered the big hill that I grew up on, we sipped Shirley Temples at our grandparents' 50th anniversary celebration:

and again at their 60th, which she graciously shared with her wedding weekend.

Together, we were the Six C's (six girl cousins-so creative, I know!) Left to right: Heather, Holly, Regan, me, Whitney and my sister, Katie. A lot of the time, Whitney and I would pair up at family reunions and throughout the years, though our relationship has had its ups and downs, we're stronger for it.

Now, not only do we have some DNA in common, we also have a love of photography the past several years. Whitney has often been my sounding board-someone I can thoroughly trust to give me the logical reasons why or why not to buy a lens, creative posing ideas for families, and most recently, some stylish tips. Specifically, more creative camera straps from Etsy.

At several events that I've covered, I'd occasionally notice that I'd get some stares or glares. And I slowly realized that I was being sized up as a photographer by what brand of camera I was using. The black and gold Nikon logo is pretty clear, as is its Canon red & blue counterpart. While I'm thoroughly secure in my choice of camera, and I have used both, I didn't want to be judged by what I was holding-I wanted to be judged by my work.

And

Whitney

, without knowing this entire back story, gave me a way out-

These images were taken by

Austin Day

at the same session where Gerard & I had our photos taken for our anniversary. :)

So, Whitney, thank you for giving me more style while I shoot. Thank you for "talking shop" with me whenever have the chance to visit. Thank you for helping me out and guiding me through decisions even if you didn't realize that you were. Thank you for sharing just what you do. I thoroughly appreciate everything you are and greatly value our friendship as fellow photogs and most importantly, as a member of the 6 C's.

All my love,

Carrie