Like fingerprints, every kiss at a wedding is completely unique and special.
In ancient Rome the first kiss was more transactional. In an age of widespread illiteracy, kisses served to seal agreements; thus the expression “to seal with a kiss”
I wanted to share my top 10 wedding kisses.
It’s been a while since I’ve sat in front of my computer and written anything. With all that’s going on in the world, all I seem to be able to do is sit and stare open-mouth at the TV, Tiktok, Facebook, the internet…
Since we’re in June, Pride-month, I wanted to post a love is love blog.
A little history:
June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Patrons of the Stonewall, other Village lesbian and gay bars, and neighborhood street people fought back when the police became violent. Marsha P. Johnson, a black trans woman, threw the first brick and Storme DeLarverie, a black lesbian woman, threw the first points. The riots are widely considered to constitute one of the most important events leading to the gay liberation movement[4][5][6][7] and the modern fight for LGBT rights in the United States.
The world we live in now is thanks to all of those brave people who came before us, but there’s still a lot of work to do and more brave people are being called to the fight for equal rights.
Make a difference, be the change.
love is beautiful in all of its forms. Cherish it, because it’s not every day it happens.
When life hands you lemons, the best of us make lemonade. Emily & Jacob did just that. Their wedding was scheduled on April 25, in the height of the pandemic shutdown.
Instead of rescheduling their wedding, they decided to have a small (family only) wedding at a park in Houston. The ceremony was beautiful, and the weather was perfect. Emily’s mother walked her to the crops of trees where Jacob and his brother stood. Each family unit stayed at the 6 foot social distance.
After the ceremony, Emily and Jacob went their house to watch their friends and family drive by in a wedding parade. Friends stopped by to congratulate the happy couple. Some people threw confetti, others decorated their cars.
Honestly, the parade was so much fun and Emily & Jacob had huge smiles on their faces. I am totally stealing the parade idea for Tristan’s 6-th birthday!
Sometime later, the couple will have a reception so they can celebrate with all of their friends and family.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted a top-10 wedding photography post. I love wedding flowers, they really bring the much needed pizazz wedding decorations need. Wedding flowers can be in anything from a bouquet, boutonniere and hair to the more unique, table decoration, large alter decoration and cake!
Get creative, you don’t have to have the standard bouquet, change up the shape or what’s inside. Add something edible! Now’s the time to really think about some crazy unique things you can have in your bouquet.
Special thank you to some of the amazing florists featured above. Don’t forget to support small businesses. Mother’s Day is coming up. Have you bought flowers or plants for her? Try one of the below companies:
For some reason, I find myself imagining the COVID-19 virus as a WWE wrestler “coming to take your wedding OUT!”
It was a snowball effect. It started as a few out-of-town guests unable to travel then blossomed into local guests canceling and then the venue canceling the event…
Now we find our wedding unconscious on the ring floor while COVID-19 stands on top of it’s lifeless body riling the crowd up. What’s next?
Well like many WWE matches, the underdog eventually wins, so let’s pick up the pieces and see this to the end.
I can tell you that ALL of your wedding vendors want to continue being a part of your wedding, even if it’s on a different day, or (aside from your venue) at a different location.
Step 1: Pick a new date (hopefully one the venue has available). If there is a vendor you REALLY want at your wedding (like a wedding photographer) ask them if they’re available on the date you’re looking at. I’m concerned for the snowball effect this will have on 2021 wedding dates. Make sure to re-schedule as soon as you can.
Step 2: Inform your vendors of your new date/location. If you have a wedding coordinator, let them know and they should be able to get the info out to all of the other vendors.
Step 3: If some of your vendors are unavailable on your wedding date, ask who they recommend. On the plus side, you aren’t starting from scratch. You’ve already done most of the hard work.
Step 4: Get married!
Regardless of the outcome, this will be a story for you to tell your grandchildren.
When people think about wedding photographers and the work they do, they think about someone who directs people where and how to stand shoots a couple of quick pictures and moves on to another group of photo setups.
What many people may not realize is that we are so much more than just wedding photographers. We wear many hats at weddings.
So what exactly goes on behind the scenes of each wedding we photograph?
Before your wedding even starts, we’re researching your venue (even if we’ve been there before). Coming up with an image game-plan. Prepping our gear to make sure the cameras and lenses are clean, the batteries are fully charged (with loads of backups) and that we have plenty of SD/Flash cards. We send a questionnaire to our couples to help us develop our wedding timeline. If the couple has a wedding coordinator, then we’ll develop a plan with the coordinator.
On your wedding day, we take photos of all the prep work that goes into your wedding. We are taking detail photos, photos if you getting into your dress, photos of boutonnieres being pinned.
An important element of our gear is a set of walki-talkies that help to communicate to the other photographer and between the couples on their wedding day. This allows us to move about with confidence that no one will see the bride before she is ready.
We bring snacks and emergency supplies like makeup remover, pins, a sewing kit… We help out in any way we can. I can’t tell you how many boutonnieres I’ve pinned, and how many lessons on “how to pin a boutonniere,” I’ve given.
Before your ceremony, we are getting into place and making sure everything is good to go. We try to move around quietly and without blocking your guests views. After your wedding, we gather your family and wedding party and start whittling down the people. We slowly send people inside until it is just the newley weds. This gives us some time to take some intimate photos between the two and allows time for everyone to settle for the couples grand entrance.
At the ceremony, we get a little breathing room. We check out schedule and talk with the DJ to make sure we’re on the same timeline. At this point, the DJ is usually running the show. We are taking all of the regular, cake cutting, first dance, speech photos, but we are also taking candid photos and group photos. Sometimes we answer guests questions, direct them to the bathroom, let them know when things are going to happen. I can’t help to dance at wedding, especially if the dance floor is empty. At the end of the wedding night, I try to help pick up a little before I leave.
After your wedding, some photographers are done. They send images off to someone to be edited (or they don’t edit). As soon as I get home, I start the download process. As the images are downloading, I grab a few to run a quick edit so I can throw some sneak peeks up on Facebook. For the next few weeks, I spend my time behind my computer culling and editing through every image all while making sure to upload images to social media and post a blog about your wedding.
When all of the images have been edited, I upload them to an online gallery that I send to the newlyweds. The cool thing about the link is that it’s instant and it can be shared with anyone.
Have you seen me dance at your wedding or at a friends wedding? Didn’t happen unless you have video proof! (wink)
It’s that time of year when the weather warms and the spring buds show. This is one of my favorite (and least favorite) times of the year. It’s my favorite time for weddings, but oh man does this season really like to mess with my allergies.
Bruce & Kala’s spring wedding at White Oaks on the Bayou marks my first wedding for the year, and boy did they knock it out the park!
Kayla and her bridesmaids got ready in these adorable flower patterned silk robes that Kayla’s mom found in Taiwan. They opened some bubblie and had a blast getting ready at White oaks on the Bayou. What’s the best way to put on makeup? With a glass of champagne in your hand, that’s what!
The wedding was perfect! Bruce and Kayla married outside in front of a circlet of roses and pink carnations with the soft, warm breeze whispering through their hair. Birds chirped off in the distance and the little stream that runs past the property burbled quietly.
After the sun dipped below the horizon, the fire pit was lit and guests migrated toward the flames to sit and chat or to make some delicious S’mores. The night ended in a sparkler exit and a final kiss from the happy couple.
Venue: White oaks on the Bayou
Hair: Glitter & Glam by Sarah
Makeup: Samantha Hinesly
Florist: Holyoak Floral Designs
Cake: Wedding cakes by Tammy Allen
Dress: Weddings by Debbie
Suit: Men’s Wearhouse
Videographer: Reverent Wedding Films
DJ: LG Event Entertainment & Production
As a wedding photographer, sometimes I find myself helping out in all sorts of weird ways. This last wedding, I helped fetch water for everyone before we started taking photos. I’ve been known to pin a boutonniere or two (or 20) in my day. I even help throw away trash. I do it because I love what I do and I want more than just the wedding photos to be perfect. I want the whole day to be perfect for my couples.
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Today, in the middle of all of this crazy, I find myself working on being a calm, collected individual. There’s a whole lot of uncertainties going around right now. Not just with wedding days being kept/canceled/rescheduled but with life and the future.
I’m not a doctor, so I can’t tell you what to do. You’ll just have to figure that out for yourself. I can say, with the utmost certainty, that we, your wedding vendors, will be there for you every step of the way.
Please understand that we only want the best for you. If you have to reschedule your wedding date, we’re here for you. We will do everything in our power to make that shift as smooth as possible. If you just want to have an intimate wedding on your scheduled wedding date, we will be there for you as well.
Just remember, in this time of need, always make sure to look back and reach for those who need your help the most.
Kayla and her mom met me on a sunny day in January at White Oaks on the Bayou to take her bridal portraits. I was so thankful the weather was clear and dry for a few days so we could venue out into the fields at White Oaks to take photos.
Last Saturday was Kayla & Bruce’s wedding day! Congratulations to the happy couple. I can’t wait to share their wedding photos with you. Come back in a week to see their wedding photography!
See some of my other bridal portraits below.
First look photograph, first touch photograph, first kiss photographed… There are so many new and exciting options for your wedding day photography.
Are you considering a first look before your wedding day, but your fiance doesn’t want to tempt fate (because it’s bad luck to see each other before your wedding.)? There are a dozen other options!
Now’s your chance to be creative!
You could have a first touch (where you are separated by a wall or door, but your hands touch and you can talk to each other). A First kiss is executed by blindfolding your fiance so they can’t see you. Maybe you both want to be blindfolded. Go for it! Get a bridesmaid or groomsmen to help lead you to each other (someone you trust not to lead you into a wall or door). You could use funny blindfolds with eyes on them, or Darth Vader masks (that would be sweet!).
Lastly, you can also do the funny option of either having one of the grooms men dress in a white dress, or you can put on a costume (that is not your dress) like a blow-up dinosaur costume.
Me personally, I love when couples opt for one of these options. I think it’s a great way to relieve some of the jitters and stress of your wedding day. There are so so many unique and fun things you can do to have that sweet, intimate moment, without breaking from tradition, before you step in front of all of your friends and family to say ‘I do’.
Are you considering one of these options? Let’s talk through your ideas and the process.
WelcomeI'm so glad you stopped by. I love sharing my experience and odd-ball imagination with my brides and groom.
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