Weddings

Celina & Jesse - Married!

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A good friend of mine from college was in town a few months ago.  We went out to dinner with his sister and I heard about how she was planning a wedding in Marietta.  The way I understood the story, her and her husband were recently married but due to his deployment in the middle-east, they were unable to have a true ceremony at the time.  Times are tough when your hubby is committed to his country.  To make matters worse, two days after our dinner she lost her job at Skirt Magazine.  So, needless to say they were on a budget.  And what better budget photographer than Alex the Photo Guy!  .....actually there are probably plenty of others, but I was delighted to be the chosen one.  ;) Despite the rain pushing the ceremony and photos inside the Whitlock Inn, we had a great time.  Celina was such a beautiful bride and the couple had a wonderful time at their wedding.   Plus- Celina found a great new job!  At www.getmarried.com of all places!  I think Celina and Alex the Photo Guy are going to become great friends.  :)

The beautiful bride (my favorite photo of the day): celina1

The Don (Jesse) and his mafia:

A small scuffle broke out beforehand, but a beer bottle quickly ended it:

Hands down the coolest groom's cake I've ever seen.  Apparently this is what Jesse did in the military (click for more detail):

The groom and his best man (his brother):

Of course I had to put the older brother here checking on his sister:

The Bride and Groom table.  Despite people making plates of food for them, they never sat to eat.

The beautiful bridesmaids:

A tired couple off to their honeymoon in a fine Rolls Royce:

Alice and Rob - Rehearsal Day

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Alice was referred to me back in December by her sister Tina, whom I work with.  When I saw the couple had a website, I clicked over to it and was like "hey!  I know that guy!"  Rob and I apparently went to high school together.  I think he was president of the drama club, back when I was a freshman and thought drama club would suit me well (I was very very wrong- I can't act worth crap).  So when we all met up to show them my portfolio, he and I were able to catch up on old high school friends.  It was a nice, laid back introduction for me. This wedding was in Pensacola, FL.   I'm not gonna lie, I was stressed about this one.   It was a beach wedding.  Normally, I would think a beach setting for photography would be like shooting fish in a barrell.  However, I was a little more stressed about the timing of the ceremony.  The couple planned the ceremony just before sunset.  They knew the sun went down at 7:27pm.  First I heard the ceremony would be at 5, then 6, then when I got there it was 6:30.  My photography friends knew just one hour to squeeze in the ceremony and formals afterward would be way tight.  However, the ceremony was short and sweet, the subjects knew to hang around, and I had Keri at my side helping to bark out orders and poses.   Fortunately, we got all the shots we needed even though a few clouds rolled in toward sunset.

Aside from being a little stressed the day of, I loved the location shoot.  Keri and I got to hit the beach the day of the rehearsal and she got more sun on the wedding day while I took the "getting ready" pictures of the girls.  It was a fun vacation for Keri and I that paid for itself.   Now I just need to find someone getting married in Italy that wants to take me and my assistant along...  suggestions welcome!

Rehearsal Day:

Of course, the best use of a flower girl basket... sand.  Also- check out the depth of field on my new Canon 70-200 f/2.8 L !

Everyone in the wedding party wrote their own wedding tips to read to the bride and groom.  Of course the vulgar ones were the most fun to hear in front of the parents.   :)

Unintentional twins:

Eric and Suzanne Balint

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Eric Balint and I have known each other for almost 20 years.  He and I grew up on the same street in Marietta, GA.  When I heard he and Suzanne were getting hitched, I jumped at the chance to shoot their wedding.  I think they did a fun thing by just asking a couple of friends to shoot the wedding.  That way it saved them some cash while also having a set of photographers who already knew the MVPs of the wedding party.  Sometimes that inside knowledge can help a photo guy like myself. 

I had just shot my sister's engagement pictures before their wedding and wish I had prepared a little more for Suzanne's Bridal portraits.  Because Suzanne and Eric are such sweet laid back people, they didn't ask much of me nor want me to work too hard on their wedding day.  In retrospect, I wish I had shown up 3 hours earlier, brought every bit of my equipment, and put much more work into bridal portraits because Suzanne looked so beautiful!   But then again, I wasn't about to get in the way of their plans because I know even the most laid back weddings are still very busy.  Plus, I think I shoot better with a camera in one hand and a beer in the other.    Kidding!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Of course she made the album.  :)

 

 

 

 

 

Diana and Wesley Engaged

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By the time this blog post actually goes up, they'll already have been married, but going along with the theme of getting my blog up to date, you get to see things backward.   These were definitely taken as their engagement photos to be published in their guestbook.  The official wedding pictures are far superior and were taken by Brandelyn Lee Photography.  They can be found here.   One day I hope to be half as good as Brandy.  I've been looking at her work before I even bought my first digital.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

First try...

 

Second try...

Poppy's Wedding

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So these pictures aren't from my "Poppy," but from my boss's dad.   He recently was remarried at a small ceremony in Duluth, GA.   For this shoot, I was paid in italian food rather than dollars.  :) We had a fun time.  I've never seen a priest laugh through a wedding ceremony, but when you read bible verses to a 72 yearold that say "there comes a time when a man must leave his father's home..." and "may you be blessed with many children..."   I guess he couldn't help but laugh.   No worries, everyone else enjoyed themselves too. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sean... in Italy