What a night! Darcy & Ian wanted a sunset and I think they got one of the most spectacular sunset’s we’ve ever seen in Seattle!
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Come see us at the DAR Rainier Bridal Show on 6/24!
Summer is now officially here, marking the start of the “prime” wedding season in Seattle. We’ve been quiet on the blog because we’ve been busy on location with our couples, but we wanted to pop up and get the word out about a wedding show we’re participating in this week at the DAR Rainier Chapter House in Capitol Hill.
We first came to the Rainier Chapter House shooting a wedding with one of our clients last year, and loved the space (and how well they did the event). Kelly and I live in Capitol Hill, and got so excited about a Capitol Hill specific wedding show, we jumped at the opportunity to take part this year.
If you’re starting to plan your wedding (or event), we invite you to join us at the wedding show on Thursday, June 24th, from 6PM to 8PM. Refreshments will be on hand, as well as a variety of local vendors, from catering to florists, who can help with virtually every aspect of your wedding, from DJs to flowers to food, many of them in and around Capitol Hill.
Kelly and I will be upstairs in the main room with a few of our sample albums. If you’ve got questions, please drop by and see us! For more information, including directions, hop on over to Rainier Chapter House’s events page. We hope to see you there!
(PS: Look for more sneak peeks at some of our early season work coming soon, just as soon as we’re finished getting everything ready for the show!)
Posted in Inside the Studio Comments closed
Jet & Don Engagement Session
We had great weather and a great couple for last weekend’s engagement session. Thanks to Jet and Don for the great location suggestions, here is a sneak peak of the photos…enjoy!
Posted in Behind the Lens, Weddings Comments closed
Photo management for the rest of us
If you take a lot of photos like we do, it’s easy to lose track of all of them. Keeping them organized can be a big part of the challenge. If you’re a Mac user, iPhoto is normally the default answer. But what about Windows users?
For our friends and families on PCs, we recommend Google Picasa. There are other alternatives, including Adobe’s Lightroom (which wins hands down for the most serious users), but many are overkill for the average user and fail miserably at the “grandmom test.” Picasa is the best blend of user friendliness and iPhoto-like features (face detection, tagging, integrated web albums, etc). Plus it gives you a limited (but useful) set of tools to tweak photos and fix common problems.
If you’re still fumbling around with your own folders or whatever software your PC or printer provided, take a look at Picasa – we’re pretty sure you won’t look back.
Posted in Photography Tips Comments closed
Tripods on the go, without an aching back
One of the things that we don’t like about portable cameras is that they don’t do very well in low light conditions (think: inside, nighttime, etc). Although cameras like the Canon S90 that I wrote about last month have taken great strides in performance, most of them fall short of what you can get out of even an entry-level SLR like the upcoming Canon T2i, which can go all the way to ISO6400.
And let’s be honest, there are a lot of situations where you don’t want to carry / lug an SLR around with you (IE: all night at a concert, or at the theme park on the roller coaster, etc). so what can you do? One quick and cheap solution is to add a pocket-sized tripod to the mix. They’re cheap, easily fit in your other pocket (or purse), and solve a variety of problems: long exposures, self portraits in the woods, etc.
We’ve used (and recommend) the UltraPods from PEDCO, which can be found online or at a good camera store (like Glazers in Seattle). The idea has become so popular, other people have improved on the idea: the Joby Gorillapod has impressed us (although we don’t own one), and comes in different sizes that can even hold SLRs. And if you’re looking for the ultimate in “pocketability,” there’s even a small tripod that screws on to the top of your water bottle.
What does it matter? The image below was taken at night in Munich years ago on my trusty old S60. To get the exposure with no flash, the shutter was set to 4 seconds on “remote timer” (otherwise you get blur from the shaking when you press the button). It won’t win me any awards, but it’s remarkably clear and even has the pleasing “water blur”. Just a sample of what’s possible with a tiny $20 accessory.
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Google Docs Wedding Templates
We LOVE Google! I think I spend more time with Google than I do with my husband 
BUT, I’m wanting to plan my wedding all over again just so I can use these templates.
Check it out on Google and Style Me Pretty.
They have budget templates, seating charts, day of wedding schedules, and other amazingness!! Plus they include tips from Style Me Pretty.
I’m nearly drooling, can you tell?!
Posted in Wedding Trends, Favorites, and Insights Comments closed
Blessing of the Rings
One of the really cool trends we’ve seen is the blessing of the rings. During a traditional ceremony the officiant usually says a few words about the significance of the rings, but this year we saw several couples have the rings passed by family and friends so that they could be blessed by everyone. Very cool!
Posted in Wedding Trends, Favorites, and Insights Comments closed
Our new studio + new red-eye sessions for 2010!
As wedding photographers, most of our work is on location. As such, we haven’t maintained space in our studio for indoor shoots. That is, until now!
I’m excited to announce that last Friday, we joined forces with a few other photographers from Studio Brick, a gallery and studio space in Pioneer Square. Joining up with the studio means we now have access to a great location for indoor portrait sessions and client meetings. As it’s in the basement of a historic building in Pioneer Square, it’s got a lot of great charm and character that we love.
It’s an awesome opportunity for us to widen our scope a bit to include more of the pre and post wedding portraiture that is much easier to do with a studio. This means all of our clients will have the choice of a studio session or on-location shoot for your engagement (which will help a lot if you need pictures in the spring when it’s still rainy).
We’re so excited about the studio, we’re adding complimentary ”red eye” sessions for all of our 2010 clients.
That means all of our packages include both an engagement session on location, in our studio, or a combo studio + downtown walk (our favorite), plus an after-wedding red eye session in the studio, where you can get back in the dress and really have a blast behind closed doors!
(Current clients should be on the lookout for a note from Kelly later this week.)
Later in the year, we’re also planning to open up for a few of the Seattle art walks for current and prospective clients. Stay tuned to our blog for updates and more info about our openings in the spring.
More pictures of the space will be coming soon. In the meantime, if you have any questions, or would like to inquire about how to book a session, drop us a line. We’d love to hear from you!
Posted in Inside the Studio Comments closed
The First Look
It takes months of planning to get ready for the big day and it takes hours of prep for the bride (and groom!) to get ready for the big moment: the moment they see each other on wedding day for the first time. Some choose to wait until the bride walks down the aisle, but it’s really fun when a couple decides to have a “first look.” Many choose a special location to have a secluded first look at each other. It means you get to experience this intimate moment alone. It also give us a better chance to capture the emotions involved. Here are some of our favorite first looks from the year!
More of the series after the jump…
Posted in Wedding Trends, Favorites, and Insights Comments closed
Q&A: Why is all day coverage important?
One of the most common questions we get from couples is how much our hourly rate is. Many are surprised by our response: “We don’t have one.”
Why? Good question. To answer the question, it will help to know a little more about our own wedding. Read More
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