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K + H : Wedding Part 1

September 21, 2010 by Jensey 7 Comments

Dream couples.

Nate and I have been beyond blessed with the brides and grooms that have invited us in: Into their homes, their lives, their families; Into the most intimate, emotional day of their whole entire lives up to that point. I don’t say it enough, but we love you guys- Root brides and grooms past, present, and future, too. You found something in our work (and hopefully us as people) that made you feel like we connect on some level.

Our hope in this whole photography thing is that you’ll hire us for more than our photos. Because the truth is, there are so many amazing photographers out there. If you’re just looking for someone to take good photos and could care less who that person is, we may not be the right fit. And that’s okay! Just as you’re looking for the perfect photographer, we’re looking for the perfect couples. :)

K and H were a dream couple. They’d been together longer than any other couple who’s wedding we’d shot. She was so darn giggly and giddy about getting married she was literally jumping up and down all day. H is downright one of the sweetest grooms we’ve ever met, and he loves K with every bone in his body. K and H gave us nearly 2 hours for photos of just the two of them. Not only that, but after we suggested it, they opted for a first look. It was the most relaxing wedding day we’ve ever been a part of, second only to our own. :)

I loved everything about this wedding- The details, the light, the amazing location (it doesn’t get any better than the beach in front of the Golden Gate, people!), the fist look, but above all, the dream bride and groom involved.

K and H’s wedding was our 100th wedding. 100 weddings. Do you guys realize what a big deal that is?! We do. :)

We didn’t meet K and H until the week before their wedding day. They’d been planning a Walt Disney World wedding and after pricing it out, it made much more sense to do everything at home. We could not have been more excited for that decision. :)

I adored K’s niece’s reactions to the make-up process. :)

Actually, I just plain adored her niece. :)

Completely un-prompted and completely adorable!!

K is my dream bride. Hands down. She’s the kind of person that shows you exactly who she is in the first minute of meeting her. When she met us for the first time, she showed up with See’s Butterscotch Squares in hand (my favorite, favorite candy). She’s the kind of girl who hugs her hotel doorman. :)

Loved their playful first look. :)

Workin’ in some practice for their big first dance number later on. ;)

One of my many favorites!!

Another reason K is a dream bride- She climbed a ladder on the side of this bridge for a photo! Before I could even think of suggesting it to them, she had hiked up her dress and started climbing. Amazing. :)

Nathan and I’d spent about 5 days in San Francisco before their wedding day. Every day was so cold and foggy… You couldn’t even see the Golden Gate unless you were driving on it! Sure enough, the wedding day came and the city looked like this:

… Did I mention you could even see dolphins swimming in the bay? Just sayin’.

Want to see more? Be sure to check out Part 2! :)

K + H : Engagement

September 20, 2010 by Jensey 2 Comments

We photographed K and H’s engagement in Berkley, California!! I loved the new locations we shot at, but not nearly as much as I loved this amazing couple! :)

Fun fact: As they climbed this tree for a photo, this massive branch crashed down and I nearly died. True story.

K, you’re adorable. Seriously.

This is so their relationship- K is all laughs and giggles, and H is the more strong, silent type. They’re so perfect for each other. :)

They took us on an adventure to show us one of the best views of San Francisco from this rock formation.

Just a preview of some of their mad dance skills to come!

Up next: One of my top 3 favorite weddings of all time. Including my own. ;)

Hayley + Elfyn : Portrait Winners!

September 17, 2010 by Jensey 6 Comments

Remember back in May when we had that big portrait contest?! Well, we were finally able to do our first session with one of the runners-up!! Hayley and Elfyn stole my heart immediately. She started her entry admitting to be a blog stalker (my favorite kind of bride!) and let us know that while they wanted to have us shoot their wedding day, their budget wasn’t Root friendly. :(
“When I first starting reading your blog, your personalities really came through in the photos, and I felt that you matched ours really well! Photographers just don’t seem as fun in the UK! We’d love a photo that Nate climbed a tree to take; we’d love a self-photo in an elevator mirror with the Roots; and we’d absolutely love to see our photo in the blog with Jensey exclaiming ‘favourite!'”

Hayley also let us know she recently lost 40 lbs for her wedding day and was looking forward to having some pictures to show off her rockin’ new bod. Ok, so maybe she didn’t use those words per-say, but still. ;)

Anyway, somewhere between Hayley being crazy flattering to us in her sweet note and the next 3 amazing photos she included in her email, Nate and I fell in love with Hayley and Elfyn! We felt so completely connected to them and immediately knew we not only wanted to give them some pretty pictures of themselves, but we wanted to become their friends! I’m talking friendship bracelets and all! :)

Hayley, you’re such a better bed jumper than me!!!

Hayley and Elfyn spent almost a month in Orlando around the time they got married- How amazing is that?! We scheduled their photo shoot shortly after their wedding day so we could capture them in all their glowy-newlywed goodness! No, seriously, I’m convinced there’s a special glow around a couple for a few weeks after they’re married- See? :)

Hayley, this is why we picked you guys. :)

It felt like we hadn’t shot around Disney’s Boardwalk Resort in ages… Kinda felt like slipping in a comfortable pair of jeans! :)

Hands down, my favorite moment from the session: I told Hayley to walk up behind Elfyn and do something, assuming she’d walk up behind him and give him a bear hug or snuggle or something, and we got this! Hayley for the epic win! ;)

FAVORITE!!!!!!!!!!

Hayley ended her contest entry with, “Okay, okay, I give. The underlying reason we’d love to have you for a shoot? We just have to meet Huck! :)”

I feel dreadful about completely forgetting about that part! In fact, it was the night after Hayley and Elfyn’s session that Huck had his little adventure. How terrible is that?

Hayley and Elfyn, we’re so excited to have you in the Root Photography family and as new friends! Can’t wait for our next visit. :) And I promise that next time, you can hang out with Huck!! Thank you for entering our giveaway!!!

Sara + Ryan : Wedding

September 15, 2010 by Jensey 7 Comments

The summer of 2010 has been simultaneously the longest and shortest summer of my life. On the one hand, it feels like we just got back from our trip to Africa yesterday, but it feels like it’s been years since we’ve shot a wedding. We’ve never gone so long between events, but I think after the busy 1st half of the year, I really needed the break!

The morning of Sara and Ryan’s wedding, I was running around the house so excited. You see, I was that nerd that genuinely looked forward to the first day of school. If I’m being completely honest here, one of my favorite days of the year growing up was probably when Mom took us school supply shopping! I was so excited to get fresh notebooks, pens, and Mom always let us splurge on the good stuff- You know, I didn’t just have to get the plain purple folder, I was allowed to get the Lisa Frank folder with the golden retrievers on it! :)

While Nate didn’t let me go school supply shopping before Sara and Ryan’s wedding, I am pushing him to let me get this amazing camera strap I found on Etsy… (*hint hint*…)

Enough about school supplies- On to Sara and Ryan’s amazing day! We started by photographing some really pretty things:

This one feels magical. :)

Sara and Ryan opted to put photos first and see each other before the ceremony…

… Which totally paid off. :)

Their bridal party was amazing. I casually suggested it’d make a cool shot if we could get everyone on this cement wall, and the next thing I know, girls in high-heels are scaling this thing with no complaints. Did I mention this was all happening in crazy August heat? Amazing. :)

Our most favorite florist in the universe sprinkled his pixie dust over the Wedding Pavilion- I’ve never, ever seen it look so beautiful. If you don’t have your florist yet (and especially if you’re a Root bride!) go contact Lee Forrest immediately. Tell him we sent ya! :)