Sometimes I like to just shoot it the way “I” want to.  No expectations to please anyone else…… just me!

Saturday was our Open House, and I chose to have a friend slip back into her wedding gown and come play.  A visual is a good thing for people considering booking me for my services.  The beauty of this is there is no expectation by anyone else telling me what I should capture and what it should look like.  These were shot just for me!

A new advertising piece for Tita’s Linens By Claudia.  No garter on hand…….what to use?  Got it!  A chair sash!  Add some bling!

Ice, sleet, freezing rain….we are getting a little of all of it today.  It isn’t a pretty day, but if you look there is beauty in it.

…where it is in short supply according to the daily news reports.  It is the old “half full or half empty” view we all choose to filter our own perception of us and the world around us.  I choose “hope” and an ever filling life-cup to drink from.

Each of us can be overwhelmed by events in our lives… some good and some bad… simply more than we can handle at that moment.  It is in those moments I choose to go in search of beauty in any place I can find it. 2009 was a challenging year of injury and recovery for me.  I fight hard to be engaged in my life, and I take no excuse as a reason to quit trying.  2009 found me having to accept some uncertainties.

I felt like this waterfall. Frozen and encased in solitude struggling to find the button to defrost.  Surely it was within reach of my fingertips if I stretched towards it with everything I had.  It didn’t happen at all at first.  I struggled until one day it finally penetrated my wee brain to accept and look for HOPE.  Beauty in nature, smiles, laughter, friends, and a whole long list of things could elevate me to a place HOPE could take over.  Once again I’d be able to live in “today” and trust with HOPE in tomorrow.

All of the images in this post spoke to me. It wasn’t because I was the one pressing the shutter, but each one of them at a different time brought feelings of joy.  Joy in the beauty of people and glimpses of nature surrounding me all the time.   In those feelings came a remembering that we cannot always change what happens to us, but we can always decide how it impacts us.

We are a visual creature.   Choose to go find things that bring you peace, joy, and HOPE in the next moment, next day, next year, and the rest of your life.

May 2010 be a year of incredible blessing, and may it be is such abundance you cannot help but bless those around you.

My goodness! It has been an uphill struggle to get a simple task of putting proofs up to view.  At last at 6pm 12/10/09 it has been accomplished.

Click on this link to view proofs        <– go here to view proofs.

Your Photographer for the day was Tony Patrizi.   If you remember Tony did not use flash or any lighting equipment depending on the light in the greenhouse.  That was to reduce our footprint and allow all the guests to enjoy the Vander Veer Conservatory.  My compliments (by the way) to Paula Witt and all the staff that work very hard every year getting it ready for you to enjoy.   Please check the schedule and see it one of the nights it is open.

I must say there were some adorable cutie pie doggies!  The people were pretty ok too!

This is a labor of love and a way for Studio D Photography to give back to Vander Veer Park.  We shoot there all year round.  Studio D takes out shipping, printing, and supplies costs …all the rest goes to Vander Veer. You will be helping to support the park.

It was a wedding day, but more importantly it was a day of family and friends getting together to celebrate a new family being brought together. Eyes sparkled when people came together, and their voices were filled with warmth.  You saw it everywhere throughout the two families and all the guests.  Kelly took time to kneel down and hug the young girls that brought the sacraments to the altar.  Kevin picked them up and hugged them when guests were being greeted after the ceremony.   It was a special day, and it gained its status from two people being in love and them sharing it with everyone around them.  There were so many moments  that spoke volumes about the couple getting married.  Moments that made you smile and sometimes tear up.

One of Kelly’s grandmothers coming to find her while she was getting dressed.

Kelly’s dad was often found quietly watching Kelly while we went about their first meeting and the formals.  While his exact thoughts were his it was plain to see his love for Kelly and how strongly the day was touching him.  Eyes do say so much.   In this image is their photo guestbook just below the roses.  Dad was turning the pages and I think his face says so much more than words.     (Image was captured by Tony)

St John Vianney has a glass wall in the lobby.  All of the family and wedding party was in the lobby and could see Kevin waiting at the altar for Kelly for their first meeting together.   Kelly’s grandpa is a sassy smart quipping young man, but when he saw Kelly he was almost speechless.  It was fitting she stopped to greet him and give him a hug before her journey to Kevin.   Studio D does not take a position for or against couples seeing each other before the ceremony.  What we do share is how special it is when they do.  It also allows us to get the portait session of formals done and over with so the rest of the day just flows freely as planned.

The families and the wedding party gathered at the back to watch through the glass. Kelly began her walk down the aisle. Kevin’s smile just kept getting bigger and bigger as he heard her footsteps approaching.   It is always a magical moment.

Kevin held out his hand and asked me if he could hold my camera.  Mostly the answer to that question  is no.  Something in his eyes and his voice …. I said yes.   Kelly asked him what he was doing. His answer silenced us both.  He personally wanted to take just one shot of his bride with the unity candle with their logo on it.   What woman wouldn’t agree to posing for the man she loves when he makes a statement like that?  Kevin…. you did great.  This image is all yours forever.

Hugs are always special, but this one was super super super special from Karen.  It was totally spontaneous driven by her love for Kelly.  You cannot be around Karen without smiling.  She is 200% adoreable!  Karen was one of Kelly’s personal attendants.  One of my favorite moments with her was when she came in the sanctuary with her camera to get a shot of their first meeting.   We make a big deal of them being alone during this time.  This didn’t stop Karen.  She came in and got her shot of them and left.  When I went to open the doors she told me that we both got the shot so she was sure “we had it covered”.  This was delivered with a thumbs up and a tremendous ear to ear smile.

Kevin’s mom asked for a photo with her two sons.   I put them on the floor and her up a step to reduce the vast difference in height.  They were absolultly towering over her.   She was sure for the first time they wouldn’t be taller.  Sorry!  They still are!

My absolute favorite moment.  Everyone was eatting lunch, and I could hear this great jumbled up mix of voices in the bride’s dressing room.   I cannot explain. You had to witness it.  It was one of highlights of the day.  Their sharing stories and catching up with each other over food made it special.  The beauty isn’t in the physical characteristics of the image.  The beauty is each one of them being able to  tell you what that time meant to them if you asked.

The last two images are of them.  They smiled anytime they were near each other all day.

So often people feel we are just there to photograph the day and leave.  That isn’t the whole story.  We are motivated all day long by what we hear and what we see. How do I tell anyone that I loved the intoxicating perfume of the stargazer lillies in Kelly’s bouquet?   I noticed that time had been spent on the some of the vases etching their logo and the date into them.  I saw that someone planned that the cupcake stand would be the right shade of red.  I noticed how close the familes were to bride and groom, and how incredibly proud they were of their children and their siblings.  As photographers we share the day.  In fact what you plan, what you do, and what you say influences what we capture.

Thank you for including Studio D Photography in your wedding day.  We were both touched and felt it an honor to be with you on your wedding day!

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO VIEW PROOFS. Password is the groom’s last name in lowercase.

http://www.scn.ucla.edu/pdf/Master-InPress-PsychSci.pdf
I found a post on a forum I visit scientists at UCLA believe photo’s of  and individual’s loved ones is a good way to decrease physical and psychological pain.

Strapless  gowns for brides have been widely popular for several years.   They are not however for the faint-hearted to wear successfully.  It has to fit properly and with proper foundation to support the bride throughout the day.  It is less than attractive for the bride  every few minutes to grab both sides of the bodice and give an upward yank.  It is the exact opposite of wearing a micro-mini and spending all your time tugging downward on it for fear your zip code is showing.

Because we all come in various shapes, sizes, and anywhere from “ok” to “more than enough” it is imperative to have someone great at alterations create the best fit for you.  Then either at the dressmakers or at home get in the gown of your dreams and dance wildly to prove to yourself you are not going to suddenly find yourself the center of attention for a couple of wrong reasons.  Stretch your arms over your head. Reach across a table.  Once you have proved you will not be popping out of the gown make up your mind there will be no two handed tugs throughout the day from you because you fear falling out.

While you are still in the gown have a few moments of “working” the dress.  What do I mean?  Find out what you can and can’t do in it, and then figure out how you can do these things looking every inch of the beautiful bride you will be that day.

There is nothing like a well planned seemingly relaxed woman walking down the aisle on her dad’s arm.  Shoulders back, flowers down so the design details of her wedding gown are visible, and her eyes fixed on the man she is about to marry.  It should be a calculated, regal, well timed walk letting the entire church know just how she has prepared herself to be presentd to the one she loves.  No matter how many times you see it, it will always be a touching moment to watch.

If you choose strapless you also should make the choice to wear to your best advantage.  Straps, caplets, and jackets can be created if it isn’t for you.  In closing……… work it, girl……. work it!  Don’t let it WORK you!

2009 very much could be depicted by the image in this post.  Bare trees hanging over a road that I was uncertain where it led.

I choose to count blessings for 2009 no matter how few or how small.  How about you?  Thinking about the good things that surround you?

My biggest blessing this year has been the people in my life both on the short term and the long term.  I am richer from meeting and knowing each person.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hundreds and thousands go into weddings with a huge enormous chunk going into the Reception.  With that thought in mind let me ask, “Why on earth locate the cake you spent a good sum of money on be placed in an awkward place with a less than thrilling background”?    As a photographer we get the lovely job of making you, the cake and your surroundings look wonderful.   Is it impossible with an ugly background? No! Is it optimal?  NO!

Poor lighting…. why on earth would you want this confectionary creation to sit in the dark?

Bride’s gown is too large to get behind the table or at least in a good position to get a great shot of the cake cutting.  Why does the table get shoved in a corner, under an exit sign, or near an entrance?   Move the cake!  It is art and a beautiful creation.  Move it where it gets the attention it deserves.

Another thing we see.   The cake is placed in the center of a 60 inch round table. The bride in in a strapless dress.  Stretching across a table can have some interesting outcomes.  Neither is it flattering to the bride.

It would be nice if more reception halls would give some thought to this as well.  Our brides are doing the planning and decision making for the very first time.   They trust their wedding vendors to guide them in situations like this.

Be assured, every photographer is going to find the very best angle, and utilize lighting to give you the best possible images.  Why not give them a little help, and create a lovely cake table and place it where it is in a great place for photos?

Just a thought.

This is for Alex and Claudia