Now I have photographed Vanessa once before! Remember? I put together a styled shoot last year, and Vanessa had emailed me when I had posted on facebook about looking for a model. Well, less than a year later, I have not only had the pleasure of becoming her friend, but I was also hired to document her and Joe’s wedding day! Such a small world with how this all worked out, right?! There is no doubt in my mind that God planned this. He’s so clever Anyways, Joe’s brother, Joshua Blaney, is a good friend of mine and an artist himself! Because Josh is in the wedding, he had taken on the role of photographing his brother’s engagement photos, but there was no way I was going to miss getting a chance to spend the evening with these wonderful people!

Vanessa and Joe, I am so honored to have not only gotten to know you both more but to also call you friends. I look forward to documenting your day this August!

Joe and Vanessa are fans of my brother’s music. So cool, right? Can’t wait to see you guys at his show next week!

I am extremely honored to have taken some of his press images for his new EP album that comes out at the end of February! You guys are in for such a big treat! If you are are located in the Chicagoland area and want to grab his CD before the end of the month, head on over to see him this Valentines day! Here is more information! 

The reasons why …

1. Less crazy photographers running around to capture every detail: If you are like me, you LOVE capturing every detail of the planning that the bride and groom put into their wedding day. Without a second shooter though, who has all the time to do that? In order to capture the people who are apart of that day, it leaves me running around like a crazy person trying to capture the details in any spare moments. With a second photographer, that was no longer an issue! For example, If I wanted detailed photographs of the reception and still needed to work with the bride and groom, no problem! I would just send my second photographer on over to the reception location to do that while I worked with the couple

2. More creative eyes: You know the saying “two minds are better than one” ? This is a perfect example of that! We are artists and have moments of drawing a blank with creativity. However, having someone else along who is loving their job as much as you, helps boost creativity as you bounce ideas off one another!

3. More images: The more images you take, the more your client gets, right? CORRECT! It is as simple as that!

4. Story telling — more dimension: Another reason it was so fantastic having someone else photographing along side you is because they are able to document the same exact moments from different angles. It creates the most beautiful stories and I think you will find that to be true in the images below…

5. Less distraction: This kind of goes along with my first point but it is just that important! When you are stressed about capturing everything, it is easy to become so distracted that you forget the importance of why you are at the wedding in the first place … to document the love between the bride and groom Having a second photographer allows more time with them and creates a relaxed/calm setting for everyone.

2nd photographer’s view

My view

2nd photographer’s view (left) My view (right)

My view (left) 2nd photographer’s view (right)

I love when my second shooters get creative!

My view (left) 2nd photographer (right)

My view
2nd photographer’s view

Thanks for viewing! Have a lovely week

If you are not a photographer, you may not see why this is bothersome and you may even agree with this woman. As a professional photographer though, I was pretty furious while reading this. A main reason I felt so frustrated was because this woman has NO idea what she is talking about. If you are going to try to take a stance about something, at least educate yourself on the topic first. If you read the ad above, this woman clearly thinks that a photographer pockets every dime they charge their client. However, that is 100% false. Never do I receive payment from a client and get to keep it all. Money from each check is put aside for taxes (we have to pay those too, craigslist lady), paying for the use/insurance of equipment, and paying an assistant/second photographer. What we are pocketing is money we pay ourselves for our TIME AND TALENT.

“All they’re are doing is hanging out and taking tons of photos and editing them”

 Man, that sentence really sets me off. Yes, photographers show up on just that one wedding day, but the work really begins after a wedding. I think a lot of people forget that because they only ever physically see the photographer working on the actual wedding day. Photographers need to be paid for sitting behind their desks countless hours editing images and designing albums. Just like anyone else who works, we need to be paid for every hour that we are clocked in.

When you pay for a quality product/service, you are going to spend more money. It is that simple. You can buy running shoes from Payless and have them wear out on you very quickly, or you can spend more money on a top of the line running shoe and have them last you a significant amount of time. This is a perfect example of the phrase ,”you get what you pay for.” I have heard countless stories of people saying, “I wish I never hired an ametuer photographer to shoot my wedding. I should have paid for a PROFESSIONAL photographer because I only like 3 photos of the hundreds of images he/she gave me.” I feel terrible when I hear those stories, but that is a huge reason why I am in this field. I never want people to have to utter those words. I know I can/do deliver a high quality product and service to whomever hires me, which is why I am confident in where I price myself.

Referring back to this ad, why would this woman think she should be able to pay so little for an “exceptional, amazing, talented, and fun photographer.” Exceptional photography does not come cheap, honey! And you know what, craistlist lady? Good luck to the poor sap who takes on the job of being your wedding photographer. They have a long road ahead of them . . . (and probably months of extensive therapy afterward).

I took them home with me that evening, and I got a chance to head outside and photograph them this afternoon. Hopefully this will be the kick in the pants she needs to see how creative and talented she is! I think you will all agree based on these photos of her work! Whitney, if you are reading this … one, thanks for being such an awesome best friend for stopping by my blog and two, make an Etsy account!!!!!

Did I mention I spent a lot of time here? They started charging me rent. It seemed extreme but fair.
Remember that podcast I photographed a while back? Well, I was able to hang out with with the crew again, eat DQ cake, and have mini “Parks and Recreation” marathons

I got all dressed up for a wedding! Took me a while to get used to wearing heels … still working on it.If I was not at Chipotle, you could probably find me at a coffee shop just about everyday of the week Let’s face it, I was doing this even before winter break! I have been eating like a king and loving it!
I went car sledding for the first time  (you tie a sped to a car … turns out you should let go when you fall off the sled. I learned that the hard way). It was a BLAST! I even got to hangout with my best friend a bunch too! We had a fun time hanging out in department stores, and I am sure the employees just loved us.ahhh … reading and playing the piano. Probably my favorite part about time off! You can even check out my youtube channel

Break is ending, but I decided that does not mean that the fun is over Finishing it off with a ski trip in Galena, IL with the family this weekend! Crossing my fingers that I don’t break my legs

I picked up some plain cards from Hobby Lobby, but you can use whatever paper you wish!
Then I picked out the stamp and embossing powder. You can buy different color embossing powders, but I usually stick with clear.I place the stamp on the ink pad and stamp it onto the card. While the ink is still wet (that is key!) , I placed the embossing powder over it. Afterward, I shake off the powder and use my embossing gun (this gun melts the powder over the stamp)This is the finished look! It is clean, simple, and shows your client that you went the extra mile when packaging their products

If you cannot tell from the image, the embossing powder that is melted onto the ink gives it a glazed finish.

and your whispers softly echo.

It’s the place where a part of you will forever be a part of me.”