Bailey and Tanner Engagements

I don't remember the last time I worked with such a happy, playful, beautiful couple.  They say (whoever "they" is) that smiles are contagious.  I wholeheartedly agree - authentic smiles are contagious.  :)  How could you not smile looking at these two?

 

We started at Vivian Park up Provo Canyon, then worked our way past Sundance and through the Alpine Loop.  One of my all-time favorite places during the fall season.   If you have the chance, the Alpine Loop is even better by motorcycle!

To cheese or not to cheese?  I spent many years of my life trying to be sophisticated, mature, and avoiding cheesy at all costs.  But the older I get, the more I smile when people embrace the cheesy, sappy, silly, playful, ridiculous part of life and relationships.  It's fun.  So, with that in mind, we had to throw the leaves in the air.

 

That's all, folks!

Click here to see more of Bailey and Tanner's engagements

The Season of Bridal Shows!

Thanks to everyone who came to see us at the Greenband Bridal show in January - at the Salt Palace.  Come stop by today at the Utah Valley Convention Center!

2013 Comes to a Close... Weddings in Review

  The clock struck midnight and everyone cheered, kissed, danced, hugged...  My phone buzzed with messages of gratitude,  messages of well wishes for future, and  messages of love, friendship, reflection.  I had a few moments to sit and reflect as well.  While there's nothing particularly different about the moment of midnight December 31st than any other moment, I still like to join everyone in reflection - what made this year great?  Another 365 days of life.  What do I want next year to be like?   Reflections and Resolutions.   I am grateful for 2013, for the challenges, the growth, the learning, and the many people who have impacted my life.  I've photographed some beautiful moments and worked with many beautiful, loving people.  That's why I like to photograph weddings:  There's very little more rewarding than seeing the way a bride and groom look at each other, recognizing TODAY IS THE FIRST DAY OF THE REST OF OUR LIVES.  I believe this is true every day, but I love capturing the moments when people are so aware of it.  It's inspiring.

As I stated at the beginning of the year, we were only going to accept 10 weddings in 2013.   We aren't keeping the same limit for 2014, but I'm glad we did this.  We stayed true to the limit, though I did take a few photos at my older brother's wedding (I couldn't help myself!).  That was a special day.  Such a unique, emotional experience!  Sometimes I think it's easier to hide behind the camera so no one knows how sentimental I am - They might not be able to see the tears that way :)

Here's my brother and his wife, Nathan and Liz: Ceremony and reception at South Padre Beach, Texas

I want to thank each couple for contributing to my year.  Thank you for inviting me to be there to witness and capture such monumental moments in your lives.  I feel incredibly humbled and grateful that my job includes opportunities like this.  Here's a photo-review of each wedding day in celebration of you!

1. Mattie and Carston

Ceremony: Bountiful Utah LDS Temple

Reception: Wight House, Bountiful UT

 

 

2. Kiera and Brandon - Los Angeles California LDS Temple

 

3. Michelle and Sam - Salt Lake City LDS Temple

 

4. Kathryn and Merrick - Timpanogos LDS Temple

 

5. Britney and Taylor

Ceremony: Salt Lake City LDS Temple

Luncheon: Joseph Smith Memorial Building

Reception: Huntington Beach, California

 

6. Jordyn and Colton

Ceremony: Timpanogos LDS Temple

Reception: Sleepy Ridge Reception Center (Orem, UT)

 

 

7. Sarah and Brady  -   Ceremony and Reception: Big Cottonwood Canyon, UT

 

 

And yes!! They had a life-sized Jenga game :):):)

8. Alexis and Bret - Ceremony and Reception at Noah's Reception Center

  

9. Melissa and Nathan - Ceremony and Reception at the Alpine Arts Center, Utah

 

 

10. Angela and James

Ceremony: Salt Lake City Temple

Reception: Bella Vista Reception Center

 

Thank you all for a wonderful year.  Congratulations at this exciting stage of life!  We are looking forward to the future and welcoming in 2014.  As a good friend of mine said, "A book of 365 blank pages starts today.  What are you going to create each day... each moment?"

Happy New Year to all!

Elegant Wedding Reception

Earlier this week, I met someone whose job is installing escalators.  For some reason, this struck me as really cool!  I had never met anyone with a job like that, never even occurred to me that someone had that job (because obviously the new escalators just magically appear).  But it got me thinking - how many of us actually work in a field we planned on?  I know I never considered photography as a career until 2008.  In kindergarten I wanted to be either a doctor of a garbageman because "doctors help people and garbage men get to ride on the back of the truck."  (good thing I didn't go for garbage man because now the truck does most of the work and the guys don't even ride on the back of the truck!)  In 5th grade I wanted to be the President of the United States.  And in middle school, I decided I wanted to be a band director.  My opinion hardly changed after that - I finally found my calling.  I wanted to teach band in a public high school.  And when I went to BYU, I got accepted in the Music Education program and worked very hard towards it.

But life threw me a curve ball and I had a sudden onset of health problems that changed my path.  I was unable to finish my music education degree and instead found a more flexible way to spend the time I wasn't in bed - photography.  What a blessing this has been in my life.  There are still times when I ache to be in the teaching world, but then I get to work with an awesome couple and I'm reminded how lucky I am to be a photographer.  Each event is so unique, so well put together, so full of personality.

Working on this wedding was a great reminder for me to see how amazing it is to have two people commit the rest of their lives together and also have an elegant reception to celebrate that!  And I got to be there to photograph it.  So without further ado, I present: Alicia & Craig's Wedding Reception at Highland Gardens

The decorations were gorgeous...

 

The kids adorable...

 

The photo booth lots of fun (thanks Dustin Izatt)...

 

 

The cake was delicious and so unique...

 

The bouquet toss was fun...

And the dancing made me smile...

 

All the pieces came together beautifully for a perfect wedding.  Congratulations Alicia & Craig!

With this ring...

I love to share stories from my weddings, but sometimes overcoming writer's block and finding the right words prevents me from actually getting these blog entries posted!  I love the art of language - finding the perfect way to communicate exactly what I want to express.  Choosing my word to convey an emotion or tell a story. But I do not envy the people who write for a living.  Sometimes it's just hard!  This while this was a gorgeous ring ceremony at Highland Gardens and so much could be said... I've got writer's block.  No stories for now, just photos.

 

 

Check back tomorrow for photos of the reception!

Winter Wedding at Timpanogos Temple

  For some reason, I don't have many chances to shoot at the Timpanogos temple.  My first year in business, the most popular choice for LDS weddings I shot was the Bountiful temple.  Last year it was definitely Salt Lake.  I travel around to other states a lot too, so now it's more evenly spread out.  But the Timpanogos temple has a special place in my heart because it's where Thomas and I got married.  Alicia and Craig's wedding was a beautiful winter day.  Snow on the ground, but no precipitation from the sky.  An awesome group of people there, I love to photograph happy people!

From here we went to a ring ceremony and reception at Highland Gardens.

Contest Update!!

  Just a quick update!  We've decided to move the cutoff time back 4 hours, to 10am MST, as I that is when I will get to my office and have access to my computer to count the votes.  It's been a close contest, and while we have two entries with over 100 votes each, it is still anybody's ball game.  Stop by and vote on your favorite idea!

Remember, to vote, go to our Facebook page, see the post about the contest and "like" one of the 10 (actually 11, oops!) comments below the post.  The comments start with "Idea # _, then the person's name".

This has been so fun to run.  I loved seeing all the ideas we got, and it's been great to see the support that each person has rallied.  Good luck to everyone, and we'll announce the winner after 10am tomorrow!

Take me out to the ball game....

  When we take wedding photos, it's rare that the groom is as excited about the experience as the bride.  Craig was such a trooper to be game for all the shoots Alicia had lined up, and so she wanted to set up something to show off his passion.  She's also friends with Danica, and miiiight have gotten a little inspiration from their engagement photos.

So here's engagments part 2: the baseball edition.

 

You might not be able to see it very well, but Alicia isn't exactly a baseball player herself.  When it was her turn to pitch, the ball may or may not have exactly crossed the plate.

Craig was a pitcher for the Utah Valley University baseball team.  He doesn't play now, but you can still see how he's in his element on the mound.

 

 

I believe photos, especially wedding photos, should highlight and celebrate life.  All the emotions, passions, quirks and challenges that are involved.  For Craig and his fiancee, a big part of life centers around a baseball diamond.  I love we were able to do this shoot and show it off properly.

Why I love my job

I love happy people. Growing up, most of my closest friends were theatre-folk. Expressive, confident, and happy. I like being around people who enjoy life and like being with each other.

Doing engagements for Alishia & Tyler made my day! These two are just plain adorable. And I love that everyone can see how in love they are.

 

   I got a greeting card once that said "Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional." It was so much fun to take photos of Alishia & Tyler swinging and riding in the little red wagon, I got all sentimental remembering my childhood!

My favorite was a facebook comment on Alishia's page where she posted the photo below: "This picture looks most like my experience with you as a quasi-roommate. Approval++"

  

We had this magical mix of those bright late-summerish greens and all the awesome fall colors for the shoot. I honestly could not think of a better or more vibrant background to show off how awesome this couple is.

    

  

Be sure and check out their full engagement gallery here. The first half of their photos are up, and the remaining ones will follow.