LEO, the MGM LION

LEO, the MGM LION, originally uploaded by Image By Design Works ﺕ.

@mgmgrand #pod #photography #lasvegas

Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile ~ PARIS LAS VEGAS

Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile ~ PARIS LAS VEGAS, originally uploaded by Image By Design Works ﺕ.

Paris Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, that is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp.. As its name suggests, its theme is the city of Paris in France; it includes a half scale, 541-foot-tall replica of the Eiffel Tower, a sign in the shape of the Montgolfier balloon, a two-thirds size Arc de Triomphe, a replica of La Fontaine des Mers, and a 1,200-seat theatre called Le Théâtre des Arts. The front of the hotel suggests the Paris Opera House and the Louvre.

www.parislasvegas.com

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Las_Vegas

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Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile

The Arc de Triomphe (Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris. It stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle (originally named Place de l'Étoile), at the western end of the Champs-Élysées. There is a smaller arch, the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, which stands west of the Louvre. The Arc de Triomphe (in English: "Triumphal Arch") honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces. Beneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc_de_Triomphe

Uploaded by Image By Design Works ﺕ on 28 Mar 11, 4.10PM EDT.

CEASARS PALACE ~ LAS VEGAS NEVADA

CEASARS PALACE ~ LAS VEGAS NEVADA, originally uploaded by Image By Design Works ﺕ.

Shark Tank ~ Pool

Shark Tank ~ Pool, originally uploaded by Image By Design Works ﺕ.

The Golden Nugget in Downtown Las Vegas has this incredible pool with a shark tank in the center with a water slide/tube going through the middle of the shark tank. Pretty cool stuff!

Golden Nugget's newest attraction featuring exotic marine life.

The notorious Golden Nugget pool is now The Tank – a $30 million complex complete with a shark tank, a 3-story waterslide and thirteen private cabanas. Get up close with some of the oceans’ sleekest and deadliest beings. Or climb 30 feet in the air, lean back and let gravity show you an exciting ride through The Tank in Golden Nugget's secured waterslide. This experience is unparalleled. After swimming with the sea creatures, dry off and enjoy a drink at H2O Bar.

www.goldennugget.com/amenities/pool.asp

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjgWB6p8-Nc

Expectant Kisses

Expectant Kisses, originally uploaded by Image By Design Works ﺕ.

Dear Baby,

Although I cannot see you,
I still know you are there.
You are warm and snug inside me,
and require gentle care.

Although I cannot hold you,
or give you a hug goodnight.
I feel you move inside me
and know that you are alright.

Although I cannot kiss you,
or show you how I feel.
I know you share my feelings
and that our bond is real.

.....you are with me all the time
and always on my mind.
Already I have fallen in love
with my precious gift from up above.

by Mallory Page Lowe

MEMORIES FOREVER CAPTURED

Life happens too fast. You may want to consider implementing Lifestyle Photography to your everyday life whether you try it yourself or have Heidi Puccio of Image by Design Works help you…

What is Lifestyle Photography?

A baby’s first tooth. A child’s lost tooth. Coming of age as a young adult. Moments too precious to forget. Moments that are part of YOUR STORY. Heidi can help you transform a fleeting moment into a lasting memory. Taking the documentary approach into your home, we can record those every day events.

It’s about a story. The ability to tell that story, to capture magical moments with the skill of a visual journalist and the sensibility of a lyrical observer, is what Heidi does best.

Since 2006, Heidi Puccio of Image by Design Works has engaged in the fine art of photographic storytelling. Heidi has always held the vision not only to document life’s important events but also to evoke both the expansive and intimate details of an instant. To show not just the dress or flowers, but life’s most revealing moments.

Today, Heidi is a full service photographer that continues to preserve the most memorable times in a family’s life — from childhood to Adult to special celebrations — in an elegant, refined style.

About Me:

I am portrait photographer who specializes in creating candid beach & location portraits of expecting mothers, babies, children, teens & families in the Southern New Jersey area. We are lucky here as we have the ocean, the beach, the river, fields and some urban locations. Our sessions are fun and casual, be prepared to enjoy yourself. I am a mother, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, artist and we cannot forget that I am a mom to a crazy Shih Tzu.

You are investing in art created JUST for you; these portraits are designed to capture the essence of your children and family. This artwork shows all who see who you are and what family is to you. My hope is that you display these images around your home so that you can witness the expression, emotion, or feeling forever.

Ever since I was a child, I always loved the opportunity to photograph a particular moment or special time in the lives of my family and friends. My creativity and sense of style is reflected in my work.

Although I have a great passion for photography it only comes second to the love I share with my partner and two daughters, MacKenzie and Madison. Our home is full of memories, laughter, love, and many, many photographs!

I truly believe every photograph tells a story… and I would be honored to help you tell yours.


Heidi Puccio
Image by Design Works

Creating lasting memories… One portrait at a time!


Booking a session:

In the summer months through early November I book out about 6 weeks in advance. Please keep in mind that the beach sessions are 1 HOUR before the SUNSET, so in July we meet at 7pm. The calendar is open for any newborn sessions (2weeks and younger) Maternity sessions are booked about 6 weeks before your due date.

Please bring a clean snack, (pretzels, fish crackers, water, light colored juice) to keep the little ones going. Please refrain from bringing along your own camera, remember you hired me to photograph your family and you would want me to have your undivided attention. ;)

Your family sessions are fun, creative and personal. I do not photograph extended family sessions, as my priority is to provide a unique, personal experience to each family.

I am also available for commercial and editorial assignments.

Feel free to stop by my website http://www.flickr.com/photos/imagebydesignworks/ or my facebook site http://www.facebook.com/ImageByDesignWorks and make a comment. Thank you!


The following should be considered prior to scheduling your photo session:


--Location

Taking portraits should be a lot of fun! My goal is to make it comfortable and fun for you. When it comes to location there are several things to consider when having portraits taken. What style are you going for? Do you want more of a traditional/formal look? Or do you like to be more creative and want pictures with different background scenery/colors/textures? Location is a decision that should be given some thought. We want you to feel comfortable and sometimes when you are at a park or a favorite place, you tend to feel more at ease and can be yourselves. This is the feeling I want to capture in the images I take.

~ The possibilities are endless ~

I offer on-location photography. When choosing one location & one wardrobe change the session fee is $150. If you would like to have them taken at multiple locations & wardrobe changes the fee is $200. If you do not have a location in mind, I will gladly share some ideas with you.


--What to wear

Bright vibrant colors with textures tend to photograph really well especially outdoors. It is a good idea to bring a bag or suitcase of clothes, shoes and accessories along to your shoot. If you are unsure what to bring or wear, please contact me and I will help you.

--Proofs and Ordering

Usually within 7-14 days you will be able to view and order your proofs. We will set a time to meet and help you with the process of viewing and ordering your proofs at no additional charge.

We ask that you please respect copyright laws. It is illegal to copy, scan or reproduce the images in any manner by anyone other than the photographer.

Heidi Puccio of Image by Design Works reserves the right to use all images for promotional, display, publications and any other purpose.


How much can you expect for your investment of custom artwork?


My creative fee is $150 (1 location - 1 wardrobe)
My creative fee is $200 (multiple locations & wardrobe changes)
$50.00 per hour after first 2 hours

~Session fees are due prior to or at the time of your photo session.
~You may pre-pay for your prints during the proofing/ordering session.

Standard Printing – Effective January 1, 2010

5x7 - $15
8x10 - $25
11x14 - $40

*Additional sizes and options are available.

NJ Sales tax and local sales tax will be added to all print orders.
Prices are subject to change at any time.

Heidi Puccio is a portrait photographer who shoots on-location.

What do you get when you choose Heidi as your photographer?

Here are just a few things…
1. A collection of unforgettable images for you and your family to enjoy and pass down through generations.
2. A professional, friendly, patient photographer who LOVES what they do and is passionate about it.
3. Someone who will take time to get to know you, so YOU come out in your images.
4. Options for very stylish and unique ways to display your favorite images from canvases, custom cards, storyboards, coffee table books. And the list goes on.


Contact Information:

hpuccio@aol.com
609-576-0072

© 2010 Heidi Puccio

Copyright Information....

I put a lot of time, energy and care into your session and editing your photos. For this reason, I take copyright infringement very seriously. Please remember that all images created by Heidi Puccio of Image by Design Works are protected by Federal Copyright Law. A $2,500 fine could result for illegally copying, scanning, or reproducing these images by any other means. This is also means do not RIGHT CLICK on any of the images you see here. Thank you for respecting that!

Love Is a Verb

Love Is a Verb

~I first saw this on one of my friends facebook pages and went to the above link to read the following and just had to share. It really makes you think twice about taking things for granted! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Choosing to love every day

I was asked to study with a married woman who wanted to hear the Jewish view on love and marriage.

I started by showing her a quote by Stephen Covey, where he eloquently describes what he answered someone who asked him about his failing marriage:

“My wife and I just don’t have the same feelings for each other that we used to have. I guess I don’t love her anymore and she doesn’t love me. What can I do?”

“The feeling isn’t there anymore?” I inquired.

“That’s right” he reaffirmed. “And we have three children we’re really concerned about. What do you suggest?”

“Love her.” I replied.

“I told you, the feeling of love just isn’t there anymore.”

“Love her.”

“You don’t understand. The feeling of love just isn’t there.”

“Then love her. If the feeling isn’t there that’s a good reason to love her.”

“But how do you love when you don’t love?”

“My friend, love is a verb. Love -- the feeling -- is a fruit of love -- the verb. So love her. Sacrifice. Listen to her. Empathize. Appreciate. Affirm her. Are you willing to do that?”

The woman I was learning with asked, “But if you get to the point where you don’t love anymore, isn’t it just too late?”

If love is a verb, it's never too late. “That's the point Stephen Covey is trying to make," I replied. "If love is a verb, there’s no 'too late.' It’s a constant choice. If you don’t feel the love anymore, that is exactly the indication that we need to choose to act the love and see what happens.”

The Torah tells us that we are expected to love our fellow, to love God -- if love was just a feeling, how could this be a commandment? Obviously, there is an act that we can choose to do and this act should bring about the feeling of love.

“So do you choose to love every day?” she asked me.

I was taken off guard. “Uh, me personally?”

“Yeah, you.”

My first inclination was to point out all the giving, sacrificing and time investment that women naturally put into their marriages just by virtue of the housework that often falls their way. If loving is synonymous with giving, then how about all those loads of laundry, dinners, Shabbat meals, hosting, serving, dishwashing, taking care of our children, shopping I’ve been doing over the past 18 years? Surely, I do things like this every day, many times. Shouldn’t that all count for something?

It should and it does. According to Rabbi Dessler in his book “Strive for Truth,” this explains why it seems parents love their children more than children love their parents:

“We usually think it is love which causes giving because we observe that a person showers gifts and favors on the one he loves. But there is another side to the argument. Giving may bring about love for the same reason that a person loves what he himself has created or nurtured; he recognizes in it a part of himself.”
So the more we give, the more we will automatically feel more attached and invested in the relationship and therefore more loving of the object of our affections.

But on second thought, I realized that most of the giving I do in order to upkeep our home isn't done specifically and solely for my husband, and usually not with the conscious thought that I am choosing to express my love for my husband in this act.

So if love really is a choice, do I really choose to love every day? The answer, I had to admit, was not an automatic yes.

We often tend to have a subconscious wish list of how we’d like our marriages to be: more time spent talking, more sharing of feelings, more compliments, no criticism, more affection, less judging. But to whom is this wish list addressed? Usually, our spouse! How many of us go around thinking: if only I could be more loving, more affectionate, more complimentary and warm toward my spouse?

So we are essentially hoping to receive rather than to give!

Perhaps this is why love starts fading when we each start wondering how we can get more out of our marriage, thinking about our expectations, how our spouse can give us more and what we are lacking. Instead of investing and giving, we are starting the taking cycle. The choice to dwell on our expectations of our spouse, then, might be the choice to actively allow the love to stagnate and fade away.



“I always tell couples on their wedding day: be careful, dear ones, to always seek to give pleasure to each other the same way you do right now, and know, that the moment you start having demands of each other, your happiness is on it’s way out.” (Rabbi Dessler, Strive for Truth, Hebrew version, Vol. 1, pg. 39)
Love Choices

After this realization, I decided to take a day and be aware of the choices I make throughout the day that involve extending myself to further relationships. It wasn’t always pretty.

I found myself taking the time to call a friend and inquire about the event she had been planning for the last few weeks which had taken place that morning. I wanted her to know I had remembered what she was involved with lately, and that I cared how it turned out.

A few minutes later, my husband called to check in, his daily lunchtime call, and among other things he said: “... and the meeting went really well, thank God”.

“The meeting?" I vaguely remembered something about a meeting, but what was it exactly?

“The meeting with the donor I told you about last night?” Was there a slight flicker of annoyance detected in his voice? I immediately remembered this rather important part of his day and proceeded to react accordingly. But the interchange got me thinking: here I went out of my way to keep in mind the events in my friend’s life and I had not extended the same courtesy to my husband! I should have been the one to call as soon as the meeting was over and see how it went.

We’re all human and can’t always remember everything, but the comparison with the previous conversation made the discrepancy rather obvious.

Then at dinnertime, I quickly threw some hamburgers and hotdogs together and made a salad for the dieters among us, my husband included, feeling quite virtuous about the extra effort involved. Then my husband arrived home and ended up making himself something else because he’s not a big meat-eater and prefers a light dinner. This was all done without any fanfare and would have gone unnoticed had it not been today that I was counting my “loving choices.” I knew my husband doesn’t like hamburgers, but everyone else does, so I gave in to easy convenience and thought the salad was good enough. Well, perhaps it was, but this particular dinner didn’t exactly rank as one of the top ten loving acts toward my husband!

WHY WE DON’T CHOOSE TO LOVE

I can think of a couple of reasons why we don’t choose to love on a more regular basis the one who is most important in our lives.

Taking our spouse for granted:

This is a rather common human failing: we take those constant relationships in our lives for granted and stop investing so much hard work in to them because we figure they’ll always be there. Instead, we can spend our time and energy on others who may not be so generous and accepting. If I forget to call my friend, she may think I don’t care, may not call me for a few days, and things may escalate and cause real damage to the friendship. But my marriage? After so many years, will this kind of slight be a big deal? Of course not.

Invest the time and effort to make one conscious loving choice a day. But then again, it doesn’t create loving feelings and closeness either.

Remember the excitement and love we felt the first few years of our marriage? Well, it might just have something to do with the fact that when a relationship is new, both partners are trying hard to give to each other and build intimacy. They are not yet taking anything for granted.

Want to recapture that starry-eyed intensity? Invest the time and effort to make one conscious loving choice a day. Don’t take your marriage for granted.

Fear of vulnerability:

Another reason is the hesitation to take the first step. We keep thinking the other one should be the first one to show affection, appreciation and acceptance. We have fears of being vulnerable. What if my feelings are not reciprocated? What if I just end up giving and giving and he remains the same ungrateful and taking spouse? If I stop criticizing, she’ll think its ok to behave this way, and continue forever!

We have to realize that all these thoughts and fears are just distractions and rationalizations for not making difficult choices and moving forward:

“The lazy one says: there is a lion outside, I can’t go out” (Proverbs 22:13).

A great marriage requires making constant choices. Our excuses and fears are not realities unless we attribute power to them. If we remind ourselves that our thoughts are just words in our head sent there by our desire to avoid pain at all costs and our urge for comfort and convenience, we will then be free to see reality as it is: no pain no gain. In order to have a wonderful, vibrant, loving marriage, someone has to take the first step, and whoever does will inevitably benefit as a result, as an individual who has made a choice to grow.

As we approach the start of a new year, we have to take stock of our lives and set goals for the future. Achievement in any field requires choice and effort.

We all want to have the perfect marriage of harmony and love, growth and friendship. To have a great marriage, constant choices must be made -- the choice to love, to exert ourselves in the cause of spiritual growth. Nothing happens on its own. In fact, left on their own, things tend to fall apart and disintegrate, including love, admiration and respect. Without awareness and conscious effort, a once great marriage may just become an okay one.

But when loving choices are made consistently, almost any relationship can be transformed in to a great marriage.

DOWN BEACH ~ AC

Down Beach ~ AC, originally uploaded by Image By Design Works.

Hello everyone,

This is my first Blog posting and I thought I would start off with a Cityscape of Atlantic City, NJ, the closest city to me here in Atlantic County, NJ. This image is of what they call “DOWN BEACH” opposed to uptown, midtown, or downtown. One of the casino’s I like to visit while in Atlantic City is the Tropicana (www.tropicana.net), which is the tallest building with the dome on top. The southern New Jersey shore is a great place to visit, as it is such a unique area of little quaint beach resort towns up and down the coastline. Here on this blog I will try to share thoughts and images of a combination of various places I have traveled to (especially of the southern New Jersey area) as well as of different portraits or projects that cross my path that I deem interesting or unique. I hope this will be a start to something that both you and I will enjoy together. Happy Reading…

~ Heidi of Image by Design Works