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Kim + Mike : Wedding

January 13, 2012 by Jensey 2 Comments

A few times a year, we begin photography at a local spa. The great thing about these locations is that, by their nature, they’re very calm places. We like that. :)

So we started the day with a very calm Kim and about 30 minutes into the day, we realize one of our past brides is working at the front desk! And I don’t mean we shot her wedding 4 months ago, it was more like 4 years! There’s no photo, unfortunately, but it was nice to see you Lea!

A little bit of hide-the-bride in the nursery and down the aisle we go!

I don’t remember his name, but their pastor was amazing. :) When Nate remembers something that was said, you know it was good!

If you follow us on Twitter at all, you might remember something about a zoo wedding in November. This was it! In our ~6 years of weddings, we’ve never had an opportunity quite like this. Thank you, Kim and Mike!! :)

As any blog reader knows, I’m a big proponent of the first look. It usually helps smooth out the wedding day timeline. But then there are days like this where we have over 90 minutes for portraits before the reception! While we took Kim and Mike around for photos, their guests got to explore the zoo. So cool!

Kim was a dream to work with all day- Light rain didn’t phase her at all when we arrived at the Brevard Zoo, and when she suggested we go into the aviary for photos in her wedding gown, my jaw dropped!

In the back of my head, I’m thinking, “You know what birds do, right?!” Those of you that know me well know that birds and I don’t exactly get along. As in, Nate would probably have to escort me out after 15 seconds, and there would have been tears, screams, and blood. Hello, haven’t you seen The Birds?! Oh, and no photos would have been taken.

I gladly passed off my camera to Nate and went to play TinyTower on a bench. ;)

Luckily, no one else in the wedding party must have seen Alfred Hitchcock’s movie, or they were incredibly brave, because I love these photos Nate got!

FAVORITE!

Brushing the bird off her shoulder like it was nothing. Kim, you’re amazing!

Pretending to feed the giraffes since they never showed up. :(

Love me some Baobab trees!

During the first half of the cocktail hour, this little guy was brought out to entertain the guests. For the second half, a sloth came out to… do slothy things.

“Helloooo, we’re married people now!” I can only assume this is what most couples internally chant as they’re being introduced.

Just as first looks have increased exponentially because our brides are reading the blog, so have private last dances! While all the guests are outside preparing for their sendoff, the couple spends one last romantic dance together in an empty room.

Kim and Mike, thank y’all for being such a dream to photograph! AND FOR THE ICE CREAM!!! :)

Kim + Mike : Engagement

January 12, 2012 by Jensey 3 Comments

As luck would have it, we were able to meet up with our Florida bride and groom, Kim and Mike, when we were visiting Ohio for Katie and Jason’s wedding in Dublin! In fact, Kim had tried to surprise Mike with photos on Ohio State’s football field the day of our session, but couldn’t get us access because a private event was taking place, which happened to be Katie and Jason’s rehearsal dinner! Small world. :)

This first one is my favorite- These guys were naturally cuddly; our favorite kind of couple. :)

This campus was adorable- So many fun photo spots!

I knew I was going to love Kim when they filled out the contact page on our website telling us she’s a “horse doctor.” :) Judging by the look on Nate’s face in a past photo of the week, I’m thinking we’ll be needing her services someday!

Kim and Mike started dating after they’d both gone to OSU, so it was fun exploring the campus with them as a couple and hearing their individual stories. :)

Come back tomorrow for Kim and Mike’s wedding photos! :)

9th with Nathan : Family Photos

January 9, 2012 by Nathan 8 Comments

Throughout 2011, Jensey and I have been much more open to taking on family sessions. We’ve started slowly with past clients and it’s been an amazing opportunity. Not only is it wonderful to catch up with everyone (and meet their babies!), but it’s amazing to think of the importance of these images years down the road.

I like to think that when little Asher is storming through his terrible twos (and threes), or eventually slamming his bedroom door because he can’t borrow the car for the night, Kelly can look back at the photos we took and not only remember how cute he was, but how she felt holding her newborn baby boy.

(That might be wishful thinking; I don’t have a 15 year old just yet!) I like to hope that the images we capture are so much more than portraits, they’re memories that will help families relive times that fly by so quickly.

During the session above, we simply let Katie and Declan climb a tree. I love how true and honest that is to childhood!

That got me thinking. While we have to capture the posed family photos on a wedding day, it doesn’t really tell the story of a family at all. Jensey and I both realized we couldn’t recall more than one professional photo we had growing up; and that makes us kind of sad. (Well, I vaguely remember an Olan Mills session where I dressed up in camo with my best friend, but those photos are probably lost and certainly not on top of my mom’s computer desk any more!)

As photographers, this is probably pretty obvious. When we have kids, there’s no doubt that Jensey and Nate Jr (placeholder names, fyi) will have thousands of photos to enjoy one day. A camera is part of our daily lives and the 50mm is almost always within reach.

At this point it probably sounds like I’m just trying to sell you on a family portrait session. While we’re happy to book those, that’s not actually my intention here. It’s to drive home the simple importance of photography. Everyone hires a wedding photographer because that’s just what you do. You have a specific date you need them for and that’s that. But when that baby comes, it’s easy to put a million other things first and I wouldn’t blame you for those first 999,999. But make that last one to factor in photography. It doesn’t have to be us but it ought to be someone. Budget for it, save up for a yearly session, make it work; your kids will thank you for it some day.

Ooh, and when that second or third bundle of joy comes into the world… don’t give them a complex. Schedule a session for them too! ;)

Cameras on tripods with timers don’t count, k? See how well it worked for me when I was 5?