Vendors:

Venue: The Oaks Golf & Country Club

Second Shooter: Nichole Alexandra Photography

Flowers: Danielle Anderson

Catering: Charleston Catering Company

Cake: Publix

Hair and Makeup: Beauty Works Salon

I’m going to go ahead and warn you, this post is extremely picture heavy. I had so many to share and couldn’t decide which ones to cut so I just kept all of them. Sorry!!

Over the past couple of years I’ve really felt boxed in to only shooting in natural lighting conditions. Don’t get me wrong, I love natural light..I love the softness on the skin and the eyes. But sometimes I want to try dramatic lighting….and I’d like to be able to shoot outside during the middle of the day without worrying about how harsh the sun will be. While at a photography convention last year, I saw Blair and Suzanne Phillips of Blair Phillips Photography speak about Breaking the Mold. Their whole philosophy is to try new things..things no one else is trying. Trying new things is hard. Practicing new techniques takes time. That’s time and energy most photographers don’t want to put into their craft. I do. I want to try new things. I want to push myself to learn and grow. So when I found out that Blair and Suzanne had recently started doing a Break the Mold Workshop, I was more than excited. I signed up for it right away because I didn’t want to take the chance of it selling out. Then, I had to wait more than 6 months. The waiting was excruciating. I knew this workshop would change my world. And I wasn’t disappointed.

When March rolled around, my friend Nichole of Nichole Alexandra Photography and I headed up to Landis, NC. Nichole and I do a couple of photography trips a year together and always have such a great time. We spend our free time searching for the best places to eat and talking about everything under the sun. We always enjoy the kid/family-free time to just focus on our businesses. That’s not something we get very often so we take full advantage. Of course, there’s lots of gossiping too! Oh back to the workshop.  We were blown away from the moment we walked into Blair and Suzanne’s studio. Everything was absolutely gorgeous and screamed Blair Phillips Photography. We got to meet the other 14 workshop attendees who, like us, were eager to learn.  Over the next 2 days I learned exactly what I needed to learn to bring my photography to the next level. I learned how to use studio lighting outdoors and do it well. I never thought I would be able to shoot a bride outside during midday full sun and still be able to see the details in her dress. I did it…with the help of Blair and his amazing assistants. We also were able to shoot a senior session and add that edge that I need to separate myself from the people that bought a digital camera last week and started a photography business this week. I will forever be grateful for Blair, Suzanne and the rest of their crew for sharing so much of themselves and showing us that it is possible to grow a successful photography business in a small country town. Here are a few shots of their studio and Blair working his magic.

Blair was so awesome with the children that came into the studio that day. He got natural expressions out of this little girl while their were 20 other people standing around watching…and let me tell you, that’s not easy.

Blair builds these amazing sets outside behind his studio. Awesome!

This is the dressing room. Who wouldn’t feel incredibly glamorous in this room?

Didn’t I tell you their studio was fabulous?!

This is their client ordering room. Clients are treated to a real theatre experience.

Blair always says that he would never ask a client to do something he wouldn’t do.

So now that I’ve shown you all of the Blair awesomeness, here are some shots I got while he was demonstrating.

I know no one is going to believe me but I did absolutely no retouching on her skin. That’s what great lighting techniques do!

So what does all of this mean for my clients? It means I have a broader range of choices for selecting locations and scheduling sessions. It means I’m bringing more to the table when I pick up my camera. And that means more awesomeness to display in your home. Set up a session and let’s get started!!

I get this question a lot. “So, what do we do with our engagement portraits? There are so many and I don’t want to hang all of those up in our house.” I totally get that. Engagement portraits are so much fun but a few on the wall is more than enough. So what do we suggest doing with the rest of them? Guest Books!

I know all of you have seen the traditional guest book (except for maybe the guys out there because they always get their wives to sign it). You know the one. It has a really beautiful cover but just lines on the inside for your guests to sign their names. How about trying something new? How about having a guest book that the guys would love to write in? Our new Interactive Guest Books are a huge hit at weddings because it gives the guest something fun to contribute. And it’s great for the couple because it’s a beautiful book that you’ll want to keep out on your coffee table, not stuffed in a drawer never to be seen again. The book is filled with all of your gorgeous images from your Engagement Session but it also asks your guest questions…really fun questions. For example, “Give us some ideas for Date Night.” or “Love is never having to…?”  or “Do you have a really fun story about us?” What could be more fun for your guest than to give you some great advice or tell a really great story about you?

The book has a metallic custom photo cover which just make the images pop. It’s designed to lay completely flat when open so your guest will be able to write with ease. Only the highest quality materials are used so it will last a lifetime (or longer). So now that’s one more thing you can check off of your Wedding Planning To-Do List. Engagement Portraits…check! Guest Book…check!! Give us a call today at 843-245-7320 to set up your Engagement Session and we’ll get started on your Custom Book!!

I knew while planning our trip to Las Vegas in February, I wanted to shoot a session there. There’s nothing like shooting in new locations to get your creative juices flowing. I didn’t know a soul in the area but I was determined to shoot someone, even if it was Daniel. He was not crazy about that idea by the way. I had my heart set on shooting at the Neon Museum (aka The Old Sign Graveyard).  I approached several other photographers that would be in the area for the same convention I was attending (WPPI). But between the limited hours of operation at the Neon Museum and the schedules of the other photographers, nothing seemed to be working out. I started to come to terms with the fact that I wasn’t going to get my session.

But thanks to the wonderful world of Twitter, I met Meredith who was interested in having her engagement session done at the Neon Museum. After a few emails back and forth we decided doing them at the Museum wasn’t the best plan. We opted for Red Rock Canyon and The Fremont Street Experience area of Downtown Las Vegas. It’s so funny how things work out like that. My original plan didn’t work out but the new plan was SO much better!

James and Meredith picked us up Friday afternoon and we were off to Red Rock Canyon. Let me just say, this place is amazing! Ok, I mean until we got out of the car at our first stop. I have never in my life felt winds like I did that day. We not only had to endure 40-60 mile per hour winds but it was FREEZING! I felt so bad for James and Meredith who pushed through stopping at several locations throughout the park to get some amazing images. When the sun started to set, we ventured into Downtown Las Vegas. With the buildings around to block the wind and the casinos to duck into to warm up, the second part of our session was much more fun. We found some really fun signs to incorporate into the images, along with some dark alleyways to show a more intimate side of this adorable couple.

You would never guess it by looking at these images but James and Meredith are from a small town in Indiana. Don’t they look like Supermodels that just stepped off a runway in NYC? They met in high school…the typical All-American high school sweetheart story. Only it didn’t last and they ended up going their separate ways. But their Love Story wasn’t over. As fate would have it, they ended up at the same university. After bumping into each other one day, they spent the afternoon catching up. And as they say, the rest is history. They moved out west this year and are planning their wedding for June of 2013 to take place at Red Rock Canyon. What an incredibly beautiful location for this beautiful couple!! Thank you James and Meredith for sharing a vision and allowing me to capture these images for you! Enjoy!!

So I hope by now everyone has seen our new Designer Frames. They are curvy, spunky and sooooo much fun! Who wouldn’t want a wall full of these awesome frames?! Well, I’ve decided to do a really fun giveaway for this super cool 8×10 frame. Our frames are available in over 50 colors so you will even get to choose which color would best fit your decor. All you have to do is head on over to our Facebook Fanpage here and “like” our Page. Then comment on this post letting us know you “liked” our Fanpage, who’s picture you would put in this frame and where you would hang it in your home. It’s that easy! One super-lucky winner will be chosen by a random drawing on Friday 2/18/11. We’ll announce the winner at 12pm. Good Luck!!!!

I’m sooooooo excited to finally get to post Allie’s Bridal Portraits. Having to wait until after the wedding is complete torture! But now that Allie and Kevin have said their “I Do’s” I can show everyone how incredibly gorgeous this chick is. Ok, when I saw her in her dress for the first time, I almost cried. She was THAT beautiful!

Allie wanted her Bridal Portraits done in a farm-type setting because she was having her wedding on her father’s farm and wanted everything to blend well. Well I knew the perfect place. This location had the best of everything…old buildings, big fields, an old truck. Perfect! Allie was full of fierceness and fun!

I hope you enjoy the images as much as I do and don’t forget to leave Allie a little blog love:) Thanks so much!!

I was so excited to do JD and Morgan’s engagement session. I always ask my couples what they like to do for fun so I can create a really special portrait session for them. JD and Morgan love coming down to the Pier at Myrtle Beach State Park to fish so we incorporated that location into their session. It was so much fun to see all of their fishing pals congratulating them while I was taking their pictures. I think JD was just happy that we started the session at 7am before the beach and pier was too packed with people. We ended up having a great time and I was really happy with the images I captured. I’m really looking forward to their wedding this fall. Thanks guys for being so awesome!!

I have been soooo excited to share these with you. I just sent this set out to a recent client that LOVED them. I almost didn’t want to part with them and they weren’t even images of my children! Each album set is custom designed for you. The album is 3″ x 3″ and actually has a magnet inside to keep the front and back secure when it’s closed. They also come in these adorable little clear cases that protect it when you carry them in your purse, etc. I also love the idea of using them as fridge magnets. I’m sure there are plenty of other great ideas but I’m sure Grandmothers won’t need one as long as they can reach into their purse and pull out this little gem! We are going to use them for all different types of sessions/events such as, newborn, families, seniors, weddings, engagements, bridal portraits, child sessions, pet sessions, maternity and boudoir portraits. I can’t wait to start handing these little babies out to all of our clients.

Just a few of my favorite images from Jordan & Kate’s gorgeous beach wedding in Ocean Isle, NC.

I can’t wait to give all of the details of this fantastic vintage wedding. Until then, here are a few images from the day. Enjoy!