Last weekend I had the pleasure of photographing the amazing creations of Daizy Rizzo. Daisy’s company is named Pixel and Hank and she makes really fabulous accessories. I could gush a little more but really you should just check them out…they are really great and you can see her work in my photos below or you can check out her etsy shop and new blog. I am also excited to say that Pixel and Hank will also be at the GRUnveiled Bridal Show (next Thursday, March 11 at St. Cecilia’s Music Society in Grand Rapids, MI) so you can see some of her creations in person. Daisy enlisted a group of fabulous models and found an amazing location to shoot her newest line of work and I am thrilled to share a few favorites from the session.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jen a few weeks ago at the Little Black Book Event at the Lansing Country Club and I was so thrilled that Jen and Chris asked me to photograph their spring wedding in Lansing, MI. I ask all couples who book me to photograph their wedding to fill out a little information sheet so I can get to know them better. One of the questions is how did you and your fiancé meet. Jen and Chris wrote: “He calls it love at first sight, she calls it fate. Do either really exist? We know for certain.” All I can say is wow. So what better way to spend a Valentine’s Day afternoon than to photograph an amazing couple with infectious affection and wonderful spirits? It was great spending my Valentine’s Day with Jen and Chris and it was a real joy to photograph them as we made our way in and out of the antique mall in Mason, MI. I love how quick to laugh Jen and Chris are and I can’t wait to photograph this beautiful couple on their wedding day.

I had such a blast shooting Kristin and Matt’s e-session in Grand Rapids. Kristin and Matt have such interesting personal stories (Kristin grew up in Africa and Matt grew up in the Dominican Republic) and I love that while they grew up a half a world apart they met each other and fell in love while going to school here in Michigan (at my alma mater may I add). And it was wonderful hearing a little about their childhoods and about all the amazing food they cook as a couple—I even got a crash course in Coffee 101 from Matt who is a super coffee aficionado. But what made this session so great is how comfortable Matt and Kristin were with each other and in front of the camera. There was an ease about them that was so wonderful and fun to photograph. I also have to give a huge thanks to Natalie from Stems Event Design for letting us explore and use her florist shop for the engagement session—it is an amazing space (and she is an amazing florist too!).

You might recognize Kate and Erek (and their lovely home) from their maternity session only a few weeks ago. It was amazing to meet their beautiful baby Jacob and crazy to think that he arrived just two weeks before these pictures were. When Kate emailed me a little over a week ago to schedule their newborn session and told me “he’s is here and he is awesome.” I couldn’t agree more.  Jacob is also incredibly adorable. He has the most beautiful eyes and pouty lips. It was also wonderful to see this new family together—Kate and Erek are clearly madly in love with Jacob and I was so honored that I got to capture this incredibly time in their lives.

When I woke up last Saturday and looked at the temperature outside it said 4 degrees. It was cold. I think this might be the first time I have shot a wedding in the single digits. But of course it didn’t matter, Kara and Jeff had a beautiful wedding and a little cold weather (okay, a lot of cold weather) wasn’t going to dampen anyone’s spirits. Actually, I don’t think Kara even noticed, from the second I arrived at her house she was smiling from ear to ear. In fact all day Kara was so amazingly expressive, whether it be laughing or wiping away tears of joy it was wonderful to watch this couple on their most special day. There were so many lovely toast and kind words (sometimes a little more funny than kind) said about Kara and Jeff that it was clear they were surrounded by family and friends who love them. They also picked a fabulous location for their wedding reception. The Grand Rapids Public Museum was an amazing venue and the carousel provided some post dinner fun. Here are a few of my favorite images from the day.

I love this first look between Kara and Jeff–her face says it all.

Kara’s brother officiated over the ceremony–you can see that the expressive reactions run in the family.

Kara’s bridesmaids surprised her and Jeff with a choreographed dance.

I am so thrilled to share information about two great bridal shows that I am honored to be participating in. Both are really unique shows that are hoping to present brides with fabulous vendors with great reputations and really wonderful work. Instead of being overrun by options and information both of these shows are include a select group of vendors who were chosen for their distinctive visions and professional quality. I am so lucky to be included with the talented artists, artisans, and professionals that are participating in these shows and I can’t tell you how wonderful it feels to be included in their company.

I know that bridal shows have reputation for being traditional and even outdated—but both of these shows are looking to break the mold of bridal shows by giving couples a unique, and dare I even say, hip bridal show experience. Seriously, these shows are going to be different and contemporary and a wonderful way to meet with potential vendors face to face to learn about the talents and skills they could bring to your most special day. I hope you are able to join me at one of these two shows and please stop by my booth to meet me in person and to chat!

The Little Black Book Event will be set-up like a wedding with a color palette of purples, lavender and fuchsia.  Champagne and hors d’oeuvres will be served throughout the event allowing you to have a great and fun experience while meeting and interacting with some fabulous Lansing wedding vendors.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

The Country Club of Lansing

2200 Moores River Drive

Lansing, Michigan 48911

11am - 2pm

$10 entry fee payable at door

Call 517-333-6881 or go to Little Black Book Event for more information

I was so thrilled to finally meet Kristy and Josh in person. Although I had gotten to know Kristy and Josh a little via email and phone chats these California residents booked me to shoot their summer wedding without meeting me in person. I am always honored when a couple asks me to photograph their wedding, but I get even more excited when they find me and my work from the other side of the country. And I couldn’t be happier that Kristy and Josh found me. Kristy is beautiful and has such a lovely presence—seriously; you can see in the images how infectious her radiant smile is. And Josh kept me laughing throughout the session. It was wonderful to see this couple interact and see how comfortable and natural they were with each other. I can’t wait for their summer wedding at the Fountain Street Church and Amway Grand in Grand Rapids.

Kristy was so eager to get out in the snow and make a snow angel–Josh, a California native, not so much. Even though Kristy ended up going solo on making a snow angel I love this image of her in a sea of snow. They were troopers for heading outdoors on an incredibly snowy day and I love the snowy shots we got.

I was thrilled and honored when Bethany and Justin asked me to photograph their wedding, not only are they a great couple who share my affinity for British television, but Bethany is also my cousin. You may remember Bethany from the headshots I took of her last summer. Bethany has been busy turning her blog The “Blog” of “Unnecessary” Quotation Marks into a book which will be published later this year, so what better place to take their engagement photos than the Herrick District Library in Holland, MI. It was great lurking around a library with my camera and Justin and Bethany were good sports for getting cozy in the non-fiction section. After the library we took advantage of some rare winter light—the midday sun bouncing off the snow was SO beautiful that I may insist on shooting more sessions knee deep in snow. I can’t wait for Justin and Bethany’s summer wedding in Holland, but for now, enjoy a few favorites from their e-session.

The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats-required reading for all Michigan youngsters. Justin and Bethany wanted a shot with their laptops as an ode to their long distance relationship. Love it.

So I now have a list of must have items for a great lifestyle session, it includes: fairy wings, a handmade green sweater, and amazing light (and it doesn’t hurt to have adorable curly haired kids either). I had an amazing time photographing the entire Meerts clan. It was really cool to see three generations of this family hanging out together and it was nice getting to know them a little bit while photographing them. It was wonderful hearing how Janet and John met (or as their grandkids call them, Oma and Opa) and it was fun to see how naturally siblings, no matter how old, fall into familiar laughter. And yeah, those adorable kids were great too (seriously, those fairly wings are incredible aren’t they?). Coming up with just a few favorites from this session was hard, but here is a little peak of the Meerts family starting with the two youngest members.

Before Christmas I had the pleasure of photographing April and Kathryn. Kathryn is a very active little girl so we decided to do our lifestyle session at Impressions 5, Lansing’s hands on science museum. Kathryn was totally into all the activities and I had a blast chasing after her as she experimented in the bubble room and made a very wet mess in the water room. After the museum we had a little fun in the snow followed but a very blue cup of ice cream (a nice treat for being such a good model, but really a treat for me because kids with ice cream is always fun to photograph). I was deeply honored to be able to capture Kathryn at this very fun age and to shoot this mother/daughter session. I can’t say enough how much I admire April, not just for raising such a enjoyable and spirited little girl, but also for her commitment to the National Guard the training necessary to become an officer. Here are a few favorites from the session, and good luck April as you head to OCS training!