CHRISTIN & DANIEL - WEDDING IN GEORGIA

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh.. I don't know where to start.

Remember Chris and Allie from The Reason? Well, a while ago, Chris asked me to come down to Atlanta to shoot a wedding with him. At the time, Chris was pumping me up about the wedding by telling me about their awesome upcoming engagement shoot which would partly take place in the air.. I had no idea the level of amazement I would experience on Christin & Daniel's wedding day.

Christin and Daniel got ready at the church. It was gorgeous (although very, very, very, very hot) Atlanta day.If you look carefully, you might even see Chris in this photo taking pictures of their get away car.

I love when the girls get their make-up done. I think it's something about all the stuff spread out combined with everyone's anticipation.

A shot of the rings on the seat of their car.

The guys got ready in the kids' section of the church, and of course they were playing with Legos while they got dressed. They made a little man out of Legos that they wanted to put into the pictures. Luckily, Chris said that he could only be in a few. And then.. Chris decided to move the Lego man. And it fell apart.

And then Chris went back to work as if the Lego man never existed. What a pro.

Here are a few of Daniel before the ceremony. He was a pro in front of the camera.

Christin, you are gorgeous. How am I lucky enough to shoot all these beautiful people?!

Christin designed all of the jewelry for the wedding. Are you kidding me with the talent?

Her bridesmaids were amazing all day. Supportive and loving never looked so good.

A few portraits after the ceremony.

After we took come portraits, it was time to drive to the reception site. This is the result of Chris shooting out the sunroof of his car, and me shooting from the steering wheel while keeping my eyes on the road and driving safely. (Don't worry, Mom, I was wearing my seatbelt, too!)

You know that Daniel did a "good job" feeding Christin cake when she has to clean off her glasses!

Jump shot! No wonder she caught the bouquet!!

This father-daughter moment is what receptions are all about. Oh. My. Gosh.

Ready for their get away vehicle?

Didn't think it could look cooler? Just add Christin. This is my absolute favorite.

And.. There they go. I'm so blown away.

Christin & Daniel, thank you for allowing me to be a part of your day.

Chris & Allie, thank you for welcoming me into your home for the weekend, and showing me a good time in Atanta. I hope you'll agree that Chris and I totally rocked this wedding. You should check out the blog over at The Reason to see some more photos.

On a more personal note, Brian and I are going crazy packing this week for a move. There are big things on the horizon!

CLIENT INTERVIEW - THE REASON

I have the pleasure of working with some of the most amazing people. Chris & Allie Bartelski of The Reason are no exception to that, so I'm so glad to be able to feature them on my blog again as part of my client interview series. The timing of this feature could not be more perfect, either. Tomorrow, I'm flying down to Atlanta to shoot a wedding with Chris on Saturday.. Look for my favorites from the session next week!

On with the questions!

(1) What is your brand all about?

the reason is all about being professional, current, and fun. We are big fans of Apple and the way they run their business. There is no computer company out there that does their job better, and no computer company that takes as much joy in pleasing their customers.

Professional - With our brand we want to reach a level of professionalism where it seems that what we do comes naturally and that we take great pleasure doing it.

Current - We want to stay current, and one of the most recognizable icons from a any time period is its music. Allie and I both love music, and had a career either playing in a band or following around the lead singer (allie). We wanted a photography brand that we could market as a band, and hopefully gain some life long groupies.

Fun - We wanted a brand and logo that reflected the kind of fun people have while dancing in the iPod commercials. We want people to know they can have fun and cut loose, being confident that we will capture everything with the eye of a seasoned professional and the respect of a trusted friend.


(2) How do you see your logo working into your whole brand?

We believe it's iconic and easy to recognize. Something that's easy to slather over telephone poles and grungy venue bathroom stalls... It does work just like a band logo. It's also simple and slick, and that really reflects our love for Apple.

(3) What was your favorite part of the branding process?

I loved the brainstorming, but "the reason" was the very first name Allie and I came up with, so that didn't take very long. Once we had the idea everything else just came pouring through the flood gates. Our favorite part of the branding process was getting to talk and chat with Cailyn all the time. With her amazing skills, we were able to go from brainstorming an idea to completed website over a weekend. Yeah... She's got mad skills.


(4) What was your least favorite part of the branding process?

I guess it would have to be the fact that we waited 4 weeks to launch our brand. Cailyn's awesome logo was burning a hole our pocket.


(5) Do you have any advice for people who are just beginning to brand their businesses?

Get a big huge whiteboard or paper and really draw, write and sculpt your ideas. Oh, yeah... Be yourself, you're good at that... People will appreciate that.

I am so lucky to know such awesome photographers and friends. Chris & Allie: Thanks for answering the questions, and for being so awesome to work with! I can't wait to see you both this weekend.

nelson, nv -- the ghost town

This is going to be another post that features Jessie, the gorgeous girl from the last entry. I'm pretty sure you won't mind.

On Thursday, we took a little drive out to Nelson, NV to see the ghost town there. It was definitely a photographer's playground. Lots of interesting backdrops, including a plane crash! And a canyon in the background... Ridiculous. Here are a few shots from around the area.

    

Check out the canyon behind Jessie. Also.. She is making the middle of nowhere look fabulous. I'm trying not to be jealous.

Remember the plane crash I was telling you about?

After poking around the property for a while, Jessie had a wardrobe change, and the sun was just starting to head behind the mountains around us. Beautiful backlighting? Check.

I think this last one is a favorite of mine with Jessie by that beat-up truck.

One more wardrobe change.

Hey, nice necklace!

Warm it up a little.

Finally, I'd like to show you exactly how much fun we had in Nelson, NV. I don't have a recording of Chris Bartelski's awesome Aaron Neville impression, but I think that you can almost hear it when you look at these pictures of Jessie cracking up.

If you ever run into Chris, from The Reason, the first thing you should ask him to do is sing like Aaron Neville. I would have to say that after his ridiculous photography skills, he could probably list that talent on a resume.