Tara's Bridals: Westminster College & Great Salt Lake

Chris and Tara's wedding was on Saturday- it was at Millennial Falls in Draper, and it was A-MAZ-ING!  Gorgeous location, and what a party!  

Of course this means that now that we've captured Chris' awestruck look as he sees his bride for the first time in her dress we can share all her bridal photos with you!  Tara is an alumnus of Westminster College, which is also where Chris proposed to her, so we started the bridal session there.  Afterwards, we drove out to Saltair and shot by the Great Salt Lake and the marina there.

Tara used to eat lunch in this area and the landscaping was a little different.  We arrived for her bridals, and decided that Westminster must have put in this pedestal just for her!

One of Tara's recent loves is sailing, so the marina was a perfect fit for her!  Sailing has a special place in my heart ever since I managed to flip my little one-man skiff on a lake during a summer storm when I was about 12.  I got it right side up and finished out my afternoon.  I loved it!

I love the fields around Saltair.  It gives that perfect, romantic-wheat-field look, especially as they sway in the wind.  It was INCREDIBLY cold by then, but you wouldn't know it by the photos.  Tara was absolutely incredible to work with, and I have to give a shout out to Nancy, Chris' mom.  She is a professional costume designer, and she actually made Tara's dress!  Not only that, but Nancy came along on the shoot and helped out with the lighting.  In some of these photos she's actually crouched down on rocks behind Tara with a flash for back light.  Nancy, you completely went above and beyond!  I now grant you the most-awesome-mother-in-law-in-the-world award.   Feel free to put "wedding lighting specialist" in your resume as well.

Tara is such a beautiful girl.  The way she did her hair, her dress... so relaxed, and yet so elegant.

Take a look at her bridal gallery here.

The Perfect Touch of Winter

It looks like Xinling and Daniel's photos are going to be making an earlier appearance than I anticipated!  I loved these photos so much, I put in a late night to get them done so that I could share them with y'all.  Even though we shot these photos just recently, we happened to pick a day and location that was covered with the absolute perfect amount of snow.  We spent 90% of the shoot just above Sundance in Provo Canyon, and it was breathtaking.  It wasn't bitterly cold (given that it was the end of April), it was lightly snowing (just enough to give those awesome specks and add a romantic "je ne sais quoi"), and there was the perfect little layer of snow everywhere.  

As Xinling and Daniel were actually married in December, the winter setting was just right.

I love this next photo.  Love love love.  It captures the feeling of the day to a T.  Not a worry about the cold, no concerns about the possibility of getting the dress a little dirty- just plenty of love and excitement for photos to show it off.  There's nothing I love more than a sincere laugh.  To me, that is the face of beauty.

Look how gorgeous she is.  Daniel is a lucky man!

When we headed down the canyon to finish the shoot we found out that it had warmed up a bit and suddenly everything looked like Spring again!  I promised a look at Xinling's traditional chinese wedding dress, and here it is...  The red and gold was amazing- super brilliant colors.

Take a look at all of Xinling and Daniel's formals here.

Xinling & Daniel

Xinling and Daniel were married last December, but their reception is scheduled for next week.  They wanted some photos for their reception to show off how fabulous they are and how much they are in love with each other, and I have to say these do the trick!  Xinling is gorgeous, and you can almost hear how awesome her laugh and how sweet her personality are just by looking at her.  Daniel was fantastically supportive, and you could absolutely tell that he was willing to do anything to make his bride happy.

We spent the entire time in Vivian Park up Provo Canyo.  I love this train that they have there... it makes for some great lighting opportunities!

Xinling had a couple of super cute outfits, but I loved the chinese dress she wore for the more formal part of the engagements.  She had another one that she wore as part of the formals- you'll have to check back and see that one when I get those done!

I also loved the different scarves that Xinling had for her outfits- just a perfect dash of color for each.

Take a look at the rest of Xinling and Daniel's engagement photos here.  The photos from their formals session will be making an appearance on the blog soon!

Old Friends

We came to Las Vegas to shoot Alexandra & Tyrel's engagements (they will be saying "I do" today, congratulations you two), but also had the privilege of doing portraits for old friends.  Buzz and Cheri were lindy hoppers back in our glory days, and they have now settled in Las Vegas - with two kids full of personality!  They were kind of enough to let us stay with them that weekend and we are so grateful!  

Now, here's the sappy story and a bit of insight into my past:  Thomas and I dated for about 2 years, with a couple hiccups along the way.  About a year in, Cheri and I had a heart-to-heart and she decided that I was in love.  But no!  I wasn't ready to admit that... well, at least for a couple more months.  When I look back at that time, though, I think she was right.  I should probably give her 10% credit that we eventually got married.  And I'm glad for the kick in the pants to start thinking more seriously.  After all, I not only got a husband, but I got a voice-controlled-light-stand.  Who could ask for more?  The truth is, as a person, and as a photographer, I'd be nothing without him.

Jonathan and Zak were so much fun and full of energy.  Reminds me of the craziness and rewarding moments I can I look forward to when I have my own.

Click to see Jonathan's, Zak's, or The Family's photos.

Annie & Robbie- Small World

Anna and Robbie were sealed in the Provo, UT Temple this February.  The wedding day was gorgeous, and they were awesome to work with.  

However, in one of those weird, keep-doing-this-long-enough-and-sooner-or-later-you-always-run-into-something-like-this type coincidences, we found out while doing group photos at the temple that Anna is actually Thomas' second cousin!  As we were arranging the different groups, Anna's grandmother Eileen told Thomas he looked familiar and asked his last name.  He told her that it was Lewis and she immediately asked him who's son he was.  He replied that he was Bill's son, and Eileen said "OH!  We're your Aunt Eileen and Uncle Charles!  You're our nephew!!"  It turned out, embarrassingly enough, that they actually went to the party we threw in Utah the night before our wedding!

I guess when we see someone at a wedding and say "Hey, they look kind of familiar" we should try to figure out if it's not another long lost relative...

Anyways, we got some fabulous photos of cousin Anna and new-cousin Robbie.

These guys were a riot.  Completely impossible to take a serious photo of them, but so much fun to hang around!

Anna & Robbie- Reception at Highland Gardens

I love Highland Gardens.  The greenery is fantastic, skylights are awesome, but the best part?  All the lights they have strung up overhead!

Planning tip- it's a huge bonus if your reception venue has lots of little lights overhead or on the walls.  It makes the background pop, and helps the photo to have a lot more depth.  As a photographer, you can light your subject perfectly, but if it's a dark background without any real light in it, the photo often just ends up looking flat.

Alli & Josh- A New Kind of Engagement Session

Ok, when Allison and Josh contacted me to do their engagements, they told me they wanted to do something a little different.  "When you're engaged is when you plan the wedding... so why don't we make the engagements session a record of the process?"  So in one session we hit up a florist, a very cute cake place, a bridal shop, a tux shop, a reception center, and finally finished up for some celebratory ice cream.  It was great!  I love it when couples have such fun and creative ideas for their photos!  

This next photo is so touching... how a couple can just sit and end up holding hands, without even realizing it.  That's true love, in my eyes.

This cake store was awesome!  Bundt cakes, as far as the eye could see!  They were delicious, but as we drove away to the next spot on our list, I couldn't help but think of the line from My Big Fat Greek Wedding (a fantastic wedding movie, btw)-   "This kayk has a hole in it."

The groom isn't supposed to see the bride in her dress before the big day... unless he sneaks a peek when she isn't looking.

What is the answer to a long day's wedding planning?  The world's largest brownie sundae, of course!

Thanks!

Today was windy and cold out in Saratoga Springs, and it could have been difficult and frustrating.  But instead we feel so lucky!  We had the most amazing couple willing to tough it out.  

A big thank you to

for an incredible formals shoot today.

Behind the Scenes at Sleepy Ridge

  We had a fantastic formals shoot last night that finished up at Sleepy Ridge in Orem.  Sleepy Ridge is an AMAZING reception venue, and sunset on the green outside is begging for a photo.  I'll be posting the entire shoot in a couple weeks, but wanted to give y'all a peek behind the scenes for one of the evening shots.

First, the finished product:

Now,  the setup:

The photo above illustrates one of my favorite lighting setups, and shows how important it can be to have an assistant (or two!) for the session.  A big thanks to my husband Thomas and one of my interns, Amber!  This photo wouldn't be ANYTHING without the light.