Irene & Jim Married May 23, 2009

Irene & Jim were married last Saturday at the Rittenhouse Hotel in center city. It was a gorgeous day and they were a stunning couple. I have had a great time getting to know these two. They are a quiet couple but they are full of surprises. We opted to have them meet before the wedding at get all the portrait and group photos out of the way. The only way to go really if you want to attend your cocktail hour.
Before diving into the photos here are some of the other vendors that made this day so awesome.
Dress: Jim Hjelm
Flowers: Petals Lane
Venue: The Rittenhouse Hotel
Band: Sid Miller Band
Caterer and Cake: The Rittenhouse Hotel
Lighting: Synergetic Sound & Lighting
2nd Shooter: Steve Langdon (Thank you SOOO much Steve! It was a pleasure working with you again!)

We started the day with just Jim and Irene. I love Irene's expression here, she had the best smile when looking at Jim so I had him stand behind me. (Jim is super tall)

Love the shadows in this one.

Love this one Steve got. Jim looks like he is straight out of the Frank Sinatra era.

Gorgeous. I don't use textures too much, but I thought it was appropriate to get the look and feel I wanted in these next two.

The light was right on!

I think this is one of my favorites.

The flowers looked awesome!

These next two shots would not have been possible had Steve not been second shooting for me. Steve had shot some interiors for this building and asked them if we could take Jim and Irene up to the roof deck for some photos. They obliged and we took full advantage.

This one is looking over South Philly.

Such a vibrant bouquet and lovely details on Irene's dress.

Married!

Congratulations you guys!

The table setups were super simple and elegant.

Jim's reaction to his brothers toast.

I couldn't resist. This is one of Jim's running buddies and he put on quite a show.

The hora is always good for photo opportunities. I love that they are going in for a high five.

Last one. I love the in action moment while Irene was dancing.

Be sure to check out the slideshow for more images.
Irene and Jim I hope you are having a wonderful time in Italy!

Soyoung & Steve Engagement Shoot

Last Saturday I had the pleasure of hanging out with Soyoung and Steve. They live in Old City and were excited to wander their neighborhood and take photos. These two are so sweet. Taking pictures of them seemed effortless, they are naturals in front of the camera. They just exude a calm and carefree nature. I found myself stopping our conversations mid-sentence when I would see the perfect spot or the perfect light. We were regular chatter boxes. They will be married in August and I am really looking forward to seeing them again.

One of the first few images of the session.
I find it helps to embarrass them a little (not in a bad way) and make them laugh, it really helps to bring through their true personality. I love this one!!

Here they are all adorable!

We strolled down Delancy, one of the most beautiful streets in Philadelphia.

You can just see the love these two have for each other.

Oh the sweet buttery light! Head House Square is an awesome place to shoot.

We found a special garden I had never been to.

Love this location.

We took a little stroll through Independence Park and stopped a few places along the way.

Some of the coolest spots are in your back yard, this was the alley way behind their building.

It was so great hanging out with you guys. The weather couldn't have been better and you guys were just a pleasure. I am looking forward to August!

Three Generations

Last weekend I went home to New Mexico to visit my Mom and Grandma for Mothers day. I had not been home in almost a year and I have not spent Mother's day with my mom in well I can't even remember how long! My Mom requested a visit and since I luckily didn't have a wedding, a little schedule rearranging was all I needed to do to make the trip possible. I had a great visit and I am so happy I was able to spend time with my Mom and Grandma.

I am a third generation New Mexican.
When you don't have someone to take a picture of everyone together this is what you have to resort to! I love this photo of all of us though.

This has to be my all time favorite image of my mom and Grandma.

Grandma just turned 85 in April!

The cactus in my mom's court yard was in bloom, isn't it gorgeous?

Here's my mom with the necklace I gave her for Mother's Day.

The new growth on the cactus was amazing. Look at the little baby spikes.

Ooh that new growth is so cute. I love this image.

Its hard having family living so far away, I don't get to do the normal things you do with family on a regular basis. Even in New Mexico its hard because everyone lives at least three hours from each other. My mom and I had a great visit though. She was here in PA over Christmas but with Alma, our dog, getting sick we really didn't get to visit and do all the fun things we wanted to do. I pampered my mom for Mothers day that's for sure. We had a lovely brunch at St. Claire Winery, shopping in Old Mesilla and we had manicures and pedicures. She just moved into a new place as well and her yard/courtyard is so cute. It has a lot of tree's and cactus, its very shaded and protected which makes it so comfortable. I love her new little place.

Jackie & Pat's Wedding Video = AWESOME

You remember Jackie and Pat's Vegas wedding right? Well Dave Williams released their video last week and it is awesome, I had to share. Video is courtesy of Dave Williams Films and the photography courtesy of me. It was so awesome to watch this video back, over and over, to relive the day. Not only was it just an amazing visual experience, but Jackie and Pat are such an awesome couple and have become great friends that I am truly thankful to have in my life. I am so thrilled to have played such an important role in their special day.

Sit back and enjoy!

This is my first official experience with fusion and I hope Dave and I can work together on a project again sometime soon. Enjoy!

Mothers Day Belly

With Mothers day fast approaching I thought it only seemed appropriate to share some images from a special families recent session. These guys have been with me from when I first started getting my official business off and running. Our first belly shoot was with little Nuala and she is now 3 and very excited to be a big sister. Rebecca is due right around Mothers day, what better gift could you ask for? I have been including more and more children in these shoots, as returning clients have new babies and families grow. I am continually surprised at how well the children listen and put up with my manual focusing and directing. Photographing children can be tricky and with film even trickier. Nuala was great, she is so sweet and already showing mom and dad what a good big sister she will be.

With our first belly shoot when Nuala was in the belly we did a shot in this same chair and a slightly different angle on the legs, they have it framed above their bed so for the new baby we did this variation which will join the other print on the wall.

Rebecca looks gorgeous. She has such a perfect belly.

A nice little moment between mother and daughter.

Happy Mothers day to all my Mom's out there, I hope you have a wonderful day! I am off today to visit my Mom in New Mexico for Mothers day. I couldn't tell you the last time I spent Mothers day with her so when she requested a visit and I didn't have a wedding booked it was a no brainer.

Mandy & Ryan Engagement Session

I am so excited for Many and Ryan's wedding in many ways. First they are good friends of mine and Don's, we are all connected through our vintage scooter club so I am a bit partial to these two. Second the wedding is in Lincoln Nebraska! Which I am sure everyone in Lincoln might not think its a big deal, but I can't wait. I am looking forward to the new scenery and doing some fun shoots in some corn fields and stuff like that. The reception is also in an old theater, which I have heard is really cool. Mandy and Ryan are originally from Lincoln and their families are still there. They came out here on a trial basis for Mandy's job and they liked it so much they ended up staying. We had a great time on their shoot, we had some lunch and drinks to let the heat subside and the sun fall a little more in the sky, it was perfect timing. We wandered their neighborhood in Society Hill and ended on a high note at the Franklin Fountain for some yummy ice cream goodness.

They are a good looking couple don't you think?

Style and comfort

I have a lot of favorites from this session.

hehe, I love Mandy's expression here.

Contender for favorite of the day

mmm, afternoon light

This was just a test shot for my exposure, but I liked it so much it made it to the blog!

Having fun getting the petals to fall off the tree.

We had to of course include Poppy in the photos!

Their neighborhood is fantastic, love this area of Philly.

Hanging on their front stoop, poppy happy.

Quick wardrobe change and a few more portraits.

Beautiful Mandy

Have to include some flare.

Ending at the Franklin Fountain should be a requirement for all photo shoots, especially on a hot day.

So much fun you guys!! I can't wait to see your home town and meet your family!