Thursday, October 21, 2010
Introducing Lenox Sauceda!
I had the honor of photographing my dear friends, KaSandra and Dallas, as they welcomed their newest bundle of joy into the world! This Family is so sweet and I always love photographing them.
First ttime for Penelope to meet her little brother! :)
LOVE that face!
She loved to give him "Kisses"!
The proud Grandparents. Welcoming their NINTH Grandbaby!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
It's been a while!
So, three months after having a baby, I have finally gotten back on track with my photography! I have shot a few sessions and have several more scheduled. I am SO excited to be going to New York next week with my wonderful sister to attend a photography conference! I am sure we will learn SO MUCH!!!! Not only that, but we will have a fantastic city to explore. Here are a few of my favorites from my last sessions. Enjoy.
Jaxxon will be turning 1 year old at the end of the month! I was so excited when Connie asked me to photograph him for this milestone! I have photographed their whole family on many different occasions! I must say...I think they are my best clients! :)
Jaxxon will be turning 1 year old at the end of the month! I was so excited when Connie asked me to photograph him for this milestone! I have photographed their whole family on many different occasions! I must say...I think they are my best clients! :)
This session was a double whammy! Little Penelope will be turning 1 year old soon AND her mommy is pregnant with her little brother! I am going to be photographing the birth of baby Lenox around the end of the month!
AND.......Of course I had to put one of my new bundle of joy!
Introducing Hyden Renea Copeland!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Should you do a "First-Look" before your wedding?
It’s a question that couples ask me all the time: “Should we see each other before the wedding?” My answer is always, “It’s up to you.”
About half the couples that I photograph choose to have a private meeting before the ceremony. They arrange a time and location to see each other, and I photograph their reactions when they see each other for the first time that day. This meeting has become known as the “first look.” After they’ve had a few private minutes together, we begin the posed portrait session.
Tradition states that the groom should not see the bride before the ceremony. The problem is that this tradition was established before wedding photography became such a big part of the process. Now couples are faced with a choice: follow tradition, or devote more time to photos?
I truly want you to have the type of wedding that is important to you, so I don’t have a preference which option you take. I will work with whatever amount of time you give me, but the more time you schedule for posed photos, the more you will have when it’s all over.
There are a few things to consider as you make this decision:
Your schedule
I tell my clients that I typically need a minimum of an hour for posed photos: 15 minutes for family, 15 minutes for wedding party, and 30 minutes for the couple. I encourage people to schedule more time than that whenever possible.
If your dinner starts an hour after the ceremony ends, that won’t be enough time for an hour of photos. You also need to plan for time to sign the marriage license, greet people after the ceremony, travel to the reception site, bustle the gown, and freshen up before entering the reception. An hour and a half is usually a better choice for time between the ceremony and reception, and even more time is needed in certain cases.
If your schedule won’t permit 1.5 hours before the start of the reception, I strongly encourage you to plan for some of your photos before the ceremony.
The sunlight
If your ceremony takes place near sunset, there will not be much light available for photos afterward. I can provide portrait lighting, but I won’t be able to illuminate mountain scenery or other aspects of the location that might be important to you. In this situation, I recommend that you take your portraits before the ceremony.
If your ceremony takes place in the middle of the afternoon, though, the sunlight could be harsh and bright beforehand. In this situation, you could be better off scheduling portraits afterward, when the late afternoon sunlight is softer. If you would like to see each other before the ceremony, we could plan the group portraits before the wedding, and plan the couple portraits for afterward.
Your family
If you have family members who are older or handicapped, often it’s most appropriate to take the group portraits immediately after the ceremony. If we schedule family photos beforehand, they will have to arrive at least an hour early and spend a lot of time sitting and waiting, however, they won't be nearly as rushed if we can get family pictures done before hand.
If you have divorced parents and would like different mixtures of family portraits, getting these done before the ceremony can save a LOT of time! I have photographed a wedding where both sets of parents were divorced and re-married. Therefore, it was like photographing 4 families instead of just 2.
Your guests
If you take your posed photos before the ceremony, you will have more time to spend with your guests during the cocktail hour. You will also have more photos of your guests, because I will be able to photograph them during this time instead of taking posed photos elsewhere.
If you decide to schedule your posed photos during the cocktail hour, please don’t worry about neglecting your guests. It is a party for them as well as you, and they will be happy to spend this time chatting with friends and family that they haven’t seen in a while. Guests understand that the wedding party usually takes photos during the cocktail hour, and they don’t expect the bride and groom to entertain them during this time.
Your nerves
The hours before the wedding can be stressful for lots of people. If you know that you are calmer and happier in the arms of your bride- or groom-to-be, you will probably have more fun on your wedding day if you spend it together.
On the other hand, if you think you’ll be a bundle of nerves until you say “I do,” then you might not look comfortable and relaxed in pre-wedding portraits. Waiting until afterward could be a better choice. This point often applies to mothers, too — some mothers of the bride are stressed before the ceremony, so consider whether your mom might prefer to wait until afterward for the family photos.
The types of photos that you want to have
Several of my photos of brides and grooms are posed, even if they don’t look set up. If you want a variety of romantic, artistic photos of the two of you, you must plan sufficient time to take them. If you schedule the bare minimum of photo time, I won’t have an opportunity to create the same kinds of portraits for you that I have for other couples.
Years down the road, you will love to look at beautiful portraits of the two of you. These are the photos that you will frame, and that your children and grandchildren will love to look at someday. Please make sure that you plan enough time to take the photos that will become family heirlooms.
 |
| They got to TRULY enjoy the first time they saw each other on their wedding day! |
About half the couples that I photograph choose to have a private meeting before the ceremony. They arrange a time and location to see each other, and I photograph their reactions when they see each other for the first time that day. This meeting has become known as the “first look.” After they’ve had a few private minutes together, we begin the posed portrait session.
Tradition states that the groom should not see the bride before the ceremony. The problem is that this tradition was established before wedding photography became such a big part of the process. Now couples are faced with a choice: follow tradition, or devote more time to photos?
I truly want you to have the type of wedding that is important to you, so I don’t have a preference which option you take. I will work with whatever amount of time you give me, but the more time you schedule for posed photos, the more you will have when it’s all over.
There are a few things to consider as you make this decision:
Your schedule
I tell my clients that I typically need a minimum of an hour for posed photos: 15 minutes for family, 15 minutes for wedding party, and 30 minutes for the couple. I encourage people to schedule more time than that whenever possible.
If your dinner starts an hour after the ceremony ends, that won’t be enough time for an hour of photos. You also need to plan for time to sign the marriage license, greet people after the ceremony, travel to the reception site, bustle the gown, and freshen up before entering the reception. An hour and a half is usually a better choice for time between the ceremony and reception, and even more time is needed in certain cases.
If your schedule won’t permit 1.5 hours before the start of the reception, I strongly encourage you to plan for some of your photos before the ceremony.
The sunlight
If your ceremony takes place near sunset, there will not be much light available for photos afterward. I can provide portrait lighting, but I won’t be able to illuminate mountain scenery or other aspects of the location that might be important to you. In this situation, I recommend that you take your portraits before the ceremony.
If your ceremony takes place in the middle of the afternoon, though, the sunlight could be harsh and bright beforehand. In this situation, you could be better off scheduling portraits afterward, when the late afternoon sunlight is softer. If you would like to see each other before the ceremony, we could plan the group portraits before the wedding, and plan the couple portraits for afterward.
Your family
If you have family members who are older or handicapped, often it’s most appropriate to take the group portraits immediately after the ceremony. If we schedule family photos beforehand, they will have to arrive at least an hour early and spend a lot of time sitting and waiting, however, they won't be nearly as rushed if we can get family pictures done before hand.
If you have divorced parents and would like different mixtures of family portraits, getting these done before the ceremony can save a LOT of time! I have photographed a wedding where both sets of parents were divorced and re-married. Therefore, it was like photographing 4 families instead of just 2.
Your guests
If you take your posed photos before the ceremony, you will have more time to spend with your guests during the cocktail hour. You will also have more photos of your guests, because I will be able to photograph them during this time instead of taking posed photos elsewhere.
If you decide to schedule your posed photos during the cocktail hour, please don’t worry about neglecting your guests. It is a party for them as well as you, and they will be happy to spend this time chatting with friends and family that they haven’t seen in a while. Guests understand that the wedding party usually takes photos during the cocktail hour, and they don’t expect the bride and groom to entertain them during this time.
Your nerves
The hours before the wedding can be stressful for lots of people. If you know that you are calmer and happier in the arms of your bride- or groom-to-be, you will probably have more fun on your wedding day if you spend it together.
On the other hand, if you think you’ll be a bundle of nerves until you say “I do,” then you might not look comfortable and relaxed in pre-wedding portraits. Waiting until afterward could be a better choice. This point often applies to mothers, too — some mothers of the bride are stressed before the ceremony, so consider whether your mom might prefer to wait until afterward for the family photos.
The types of photos that you want to have
Several of my photos of brides and grooms are posed, even if they don’t look set up. If you want a variety of romantic, artistic photos of the two of you, you must plan sufficient time to take them. If you schedule the bare minimum of photo time, I won’t have an opportunity to create the same kinds of portraits for you that I have for other couples.
Years down the road, you will love to look at beautiful portraits of the two of you. These are the photos that you will frame, and that your children and grandchildren will love to look at someday. Please make sure that you plan enough time to take the photos that will become family heirlooms.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Jordan's Trash the Dress and Mini Fashion Shoot
I had the great pleasure of photographing Jordan's wedding last fall. She decided to Trash her dress this summer!! We also had a bit of a swim suit fashion shoot also. We had a blast playing in the mud! She is one of the easiest people to photograph. I think she can read my mind sometimes when I am trying to describe what I want her to do!
and... we had to get a good shot of her new ink!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Always Learning
I had a great chat with a photographer in the DFW area today. She was so kind and very generous with her knowledge! She basically told what I already knew, but needed to hear again. PATIENCE!!! The photography business is all about trial and error. So I got my camera out and taught myself something new!!!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Ashley and Dustin Lamb
Ashley and Dustin were married at Fairway Baptist Church in Wichita Falls this past Saturday! They are such a sweet couple and had a super FUN wedding party!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)