Calling 2013 Seniors!

Graduation... it's looming in the distance! I'm guessing most of you high school seniors are counting the days. That can get tedious though, so how about taking a break from counting to book your senior portraits? We'll have a fabulous time roaming around a fun location and getting great shots of you to share with your proud family and friends. I have dates available in April and May... email me to secure your date!

And what kind of advertisement would this be without a nice little incentive to go along with it? :-D

Pianista | Portraits

That's Italian for "pianist." (I bet you'd never have guessed!).

So, a little while before I got my harp, my sister got her dream piano. A Schimmel grand. Long story short, there was a private owner selling it, who happened to be 10 minutes away from us, and happened to be selling it for a great deal. It came to live at our house fairly promptly. :-)

Our previous piano was in our back room, which is very dark. The only light coming in is from the sliding door, and the walls are wood paneling. Not the most ideal photo situation. But the new piano has a place of prominence in the front room (taking up approximately half of the room), which is full of light. We took some shots of her with her new baby for use with any music-related activities.

Personalized Wedding Dress Hanger | Review

If you read wedding blogs or wedding photographer's blogs, you've probably seen a few shots of the wedding dress with one of these adorable personalized hangers. The wire that connects the bottom is bent to form the name of the bride. I really liked these, since it adds a personal touch to the images instead of just being a generic picture of a wedding dress.

While I was preparing to shoot Aaron & Megan's wedding, I hopped on Etsy just to see if there were any of these hangers for sale. I found Emily's Emporium - they specialize in these custom hangers, as well as some other fun personalized wedding favors and gifts. There are several other sellers on Etsy who offer similar hangers, but I chose Emily's Emporium because I loved their round, curly script and was impressed by the evenness of the writing.

I got two hangers; one personalized for Megan, and another one that just says "Bride," which I could use for anyone. They came securely packaged, wrapped in tissue paper. They're just beautiful... I chose the dark cherry finish and I LOVE it! It's so rich and glossy. The wire is very thick and the writing is neat and uniform. Definitely a quality, keepsake product.

I opted for plain hangers, but Emily's Emporium also offers decoration options, including flowers, rhinestones, bride/groom sets (one white with a flower, and the other black, painted like a tux!), and different colors. You also have a choice of several "fonts"... mine are Classic script, but they also have Romantic script, or Modern script.

If you're getting married, I highly recommend you check out Emily's Emporium... a personalized hanger adds a special touch to your wedding day and looks great in photos (which is what it's all about anyway, right? ;-).

Distracted :-) | Personal

I realize I've been neglecting the blog... I'm sorry, but I figured that the wedding post was so long it could keep you busy for a little while, and I've been a bit distracted from computer work recently. Last week my dad and I drove up to Michigan and brought home my beautiful pedal harp! For those of you harp-illiterate folks :-), there are two kinds of harps. Lever harps change pitch (sharps & flats) with levers at the top of the harp, and pedal harps change with foot pedals. You can play a larger variety of music with a pedal harp. I never dreamed I would get one this soon, and it was so neat how the Lord worked everything out, even to the family we purchased it from being a Christian, homeschooling family!

Needless to say, I'm pretty ecstatic and I've been playing it till my fingers blister. And ignoring my blog. Don't worry, though, I've got some more stuff coming up. Stay tuned! (pun unintentional).

Aaron & Megan | Starline Factory Wedding

Here it is - the thing that's been keeping this blog quiet the past couple weeks! Thanks for your patience, everyone! I hope it's worth the wait...

Where to begin with these two?! I've known Megan since my early teens - I still remember meeting her the first time at a mutual friend's house... we played ping-pong. Or tried to, anyway. She has such a sweet serving heart - her whole family is known for pitching in and helping whenever or wherever there's a need. We knew that when she got married we'd have to keep reminding her that this is her day and keep her from running around cleaning up and helping with decorations. :-)

I've only known Aaron for a few years, and though I don't know him as well as Megan, I certainly know they are perfect for each other. Not to mention they look cuter together than just about any couple of my current acquaintance.

Their wedding was absolutely beautiful... Megan and her sister Raeanne did an amazing job on reception centerpieces and decor, and the Starline Factory provided a fabulous setting!

It was a great honor for me to capture the memories of their special day, as they covenanted before God on a chilly January day. HUGE thanks to Laura for second shooting with me (quite a few of these pictures are hers)... you are amazing and I couldn't have done it without you! And get yourself a website, girl.
Aaron & Megan, blessings to you in your future life together... Enjoy the pictures! I think I probably went a bit overboard on this post, but I can't help it. Too hard to narrow it down. :-)

Some bling, eh?

Megan, you are so gorgeous!!

This was my first time doing a first look.

Aaron's reaction was so great... he was about to split his face open with that smile.

This is one of Laura's shots - love it!

All of that stuff above? Completely candid. Yep. Amazingness comes naturally to them.

LOVE.

love.love.love.love.

Another fabulous angle from Laura's camera!

I looked at my LCD screen and died.

This was definitely my "score" moment of the day!

Oh yeah. Did I mention the bridal party of THIRTY-TWO?!?!

I am still laughing.

 

Does this look familiar? Drawn by Dawn turned one of the engagement pictures I took into this neat wood "guestbook"! Like her on Facebook!

Cutest flower girls ever.

Greatest ceremony moment - officiant is half way through "Will you, Aaron, take Megan to be your wife - " and Aaron jumps in, "I will!" without waiting for the sentence to be completed. :-)

I could have watched these two dance all night!

I had to get my picture with the bride and groom! Love this one. :-)

Credits:
Venue: The Starline Factory
Dress: David's Bridal
Hair: PJ's Parlor
Donut Cake: Elizabeth & Dawn B. (and Donuts Delite :-)
Wood Art "Guestbook": Drawn by Dawn
Personalized Gown Hanger: Emily's Emporium