These images are overdue, as they have already been featured on the Wedding Planner & Guide website. Stephanie and David were prize package winners from the Wedding Planner & Guide bridal show. We had included an engagement session, which is how we first met them. We were honored when they chose us to also photograph their wedding. It was wonderful to see how much love their family had for them. It really was a special day for so many people!
Category: Uncategorized
Keeping The Romance Fires Burning
Romance [verb] to seek the attention of someone, especially by use of flattery, to seduce, to woo
When life gets busy and time runs short, romance often takes a back seat. We mean to do the sweet little things that we used to do, but we get distracted and forget. Or we remember the days when we had time to plot out elaborate ways to show our love. But work, schedules, family, obligation take over.
It can even leave you yearning for a sappy, commercial Valentine’s Day card.
Fixing the romantic drain is actually very easy. And quick. And good for you. [wink, wink.]
Write a little love note (it can even just say “I love you”). Hide it somewhere your partner won’t find right away, like a purse, wallet, coat pocket, etc. Then, later in the day, text your partner to look in the hiding spot. Feeling elaborate? Hide movie or concert tickets instead.
Do you have a special place? Where you first met or got engaged? Go there. If you can’t actually get there, recreate it. Your favorite vacation was to Mexico? Go get margaritas or take tacos to the beach.
This website getromantic.com has 100 more ideas, both little and big, that can bring back the romance to any relationship. Have fun!
Clearing The Clutter
Spring has come early this year, and with it, the desire to organize!
I have 4 young children and work from a home office with 2 businesses. My life feels far from organized.
I confess that I dream of an organized home. I page through catalogs that promise to manage my house. I look through websites that offer complete systems to create order. I go to stores and seek out products that will make my life easier, simpler. I think up ways that should keep my family and business on track.
Then, I have days when I want to pitch everything I own and just start over.
Before and After:
My suggestion to help you get organized: find a friend to get organized with! It would be great if that friend wanted to come over and clean your house for you, but that probably won’t happen. (On the off-chance you do have a friend that likes to clean, send ’em my way!)
My friend and I have started taking before and after photographs of our cleaning and organizing projects. We will then email or text the photographs to each other. This works because we get to see the improvement from the start of the task to the end, offer suggestions on what might work, get suggestions of things we should do, plus we get the validation of our friend seeing the hard work we put into it and cheering us on. Which is really the biggest reason of all. (Because most husbands won’t notice, which is a different matter entirely….)
If you like websites with real cleaning/organizing advice (not one of those silly “clean these 30 things every day” types) here is one to try: modernmom.com What’s your favorite website for advice?
Tanner | Modeling Headshots
Tanner loved getting his modeling headshots done, in true form for any young man that is thinking about modeling! And he was such a ham to work with that day!
Carrie & Jose | Wedding
Carrie and Jose’s wedding was a multicultural event for us. Jose’s entire family only speaks Spanish and most of Carrie’s speaks only English. However, on the day of the wedding, there were no barriers between the families. Even those that could not make the trip were included, through Skype. We loved seeing the Mexican traditions that were incorporated into the day.
The wedding ceremony was done in both languages, as were all the speeches at the reception.
Carrie and Jose worked hard to make sure that both families were represented and respected. Not being Spanish speakers ourselves didn’t even cause us any worry. The day went smoothly, and the photographs were easy-peasy, with some translating from Carrie (and an app that Chris had downloaded to his iPhone). It was a beautiful day and a wonderful group of people!
Better Late Than Never | Album from 2006
Wedding albums are important.
We know the main reason couples choose to have photographers at their wedding- planning the family portraits, capturing little details, getting romantic shots of the bride and groom- is to be able to show off their favorite photographs afterward.
These moments are too important to allow just any old cheap digital camera or cell phone manned by a guest be the only way they are captured. And, throwing a few pictures on facebook is not the best way to remember the day. Couples know that is not how you preserve such a big event as two families joining together, creating a new family history. Yes, it’s fun to share images by email and on social sites. But, they know that the internet is not a substitute for an heirloom.
And we love that clients want photographs. They want polished portraits, images that show them at their best. And they want to share the story of their wedding in a way that only a wedding album can.
We are proud of the fact that 90% of our clients have wedding albums to remember their special day. We make sure that the images in those albums are the ones that tell their story.
So we were thrilled when Jane and Kaushik, who were married in 2006, recently came back to have their wedding album created. We loved knowing that this album was so important to them, that even after all these years, they held it as a priority to get it designed and made. It’s not often that we are asked to make an album for a wedding that was more than 5 years ago, but we loved being able to do it.
And we know that as their family grows, they will be happy that they have this album to share their favorite wedding day photographs.
Album shown is the Artistic Chunky, with luster pages and leather cover with photograph.
Album Love
The finished wedding album was very important to Ashley. She knew this was going to be something she would cherish forever and wanted it to be perfect. Ashley put a lot of thought into how she wanted everything to look and worked with us to make sure it followed her vision. Ashley’s mother was also very excited about the wedding and the album. She choose to go with a matching album in the exact same size as Ashley and Casey chose for their wedding album.
This album is the Artistic Skinny, with matte art pages and full custom cover. Ashley said it was perfect, that it turned out exactly how she wanted it. I’m sure she is having fun showing off her beautiful album and reliving her fabulous day!
Fall Family Session | Madison Wisconsin
This was my favorite image from the whole session! I loved how the brother and sisters were playing around together, teasing like they normally would.
I feel honored that I have been able to photograph Melanie’s family several times, including when their youngest was a newborn. This session was fun with the antique sofa. I hadn’t realized it was an antique when I bought it, so I felt a little guilty taking it out into the park!
Ashley & Casey | Weddings
Ashley & Casey were married at the Monona Terrace in downtown Madison Wisconsin last summer. They were married on the rooftop and their reception followed in the Grand Terrace and in a ballroom.
The view during the ceremony was stunning! The chuppah was on the lakeside of the rooftop terrace, so all the guests were able to see the couple against the view of the lake.
During the reception, we sneaked back up to the roof top for a few more images at dusk.
The room was beautiful! And the dancing was a blast! They did a traditional Jewish dance, Hora, that got more of the guests up and enjoying the start of the evening.
Ashley and Casey’s album is complete, and I’ll be sharing some of those images soon!
Emily & Eric | Album
I had posted about our new albums that we added to our line-up before the big bridal show in Madison (and I’m showing it again here). I was showing off the beautiful cover, which I *LOVE*, so now I’m showing some of the page layouts inside:
If you want to see more, call us to set up a time to meet! We would love to chat about your wedding details with you. 🙂