extended shout-out

In my earlier post of John and Megan's wedding, I had mentioned that I'd be doing a separate post to showcase a few pics from my fabulous second shooter, Stacy Ventresca of SMV Photos. Here they are!

Stacy also second shot with me during Lauren and Colin's lovely wedding this summer, and we had a great time. But that was not the first time we worked together. She and I started at the same biomedical company over 10 years ago. Who would have thought that now we'd both be photographers, and be shooting weddings together. Life is funny.

Stacy is a great lady, and she takes a fine photo. Now if I could just get her to add a daggum "e" to her name, she'd be perfect.

Here are some of her super shots from last Friday's festivities.

Who can spot the dork in this next pic? C'mon...look closely. Hint: muppet face + weird pose does NOT = hot girl modeling on car

Great job as usual, Stacy! Thanks so much!

the rollins family!

It's family portrait season, and I couldn't be more excited. I met the Rollins family this summer, and was impressed with their lively and easy-going manner. At our meeting, their little girl, Ella, was all smiles and giggles. When people refer to babies as "bundles of joy", they are referring to babies like Ella.

We all met up at Piedmont Park, and the leaves were colorful and fortunately still on the trees. However, there were a lot on the ground too which was a source of endless fascination for Ella.

While at the park, I found out that they offer Argentine tango lessons in the community center for $5 (from 11am to noon on Saturdays). Anyone want to go learn the tango with me? I'll treat you to a smoothie after!

Sorry about that tango tangent. Now, back to all things photo!

Thanks so much Emily, Matt, and Ella for sharing this special time in your family's life with me! Enjoy the rest of this fast-moving autumn. If we blink too long, it will be snowing when we open our eyes. Yikes!

She is just the cutest!!

Such a sweet family.

To see a slideshow of more images from this super-sweet session, please click HERE

megan & john!

I can't think of a more magnificent location for a November wedding than a vast stretch of hills full of mountain air and vibrant autumn trees. The inspiring landscape of Wolf Mountain Vineyards was an ideal setting for the union of Megan and John.

Mother Nature tried to literally dampen the festivities with some light sprinkling. However, Megan and John displayed a kind of relaxed acceptance, which showed that this day was about the bond they share, and a little rain wasn't going to change that. Rain is temporary, their love is not.

Their day was full of laughs, jokes, and tears. Megan's dad even sang "Bad to the Bone" at the reception! There was also a fabulous live performance of "New York, New York" by one of the guests. There were some great toasts as well. John's mom said a few words, and now I'll always remember that "marriage should be like Silly Putty"! Yay!

I have to give a big shout-out to my wonderful second shooter, Stacy Ventresca of SMV Photos. I'll be doing a separate post to show some of her fantastic images.

John and Megan, thank you for being so enjoyable. I'm honored to have shared a day that was so special with two people who are equally special. Congratulations, you two!

Megan's dress was beyond beautiful.

One of my favorite things about autumn weddings.....THE COLORS! These deep, bright shades were perfect.

Megan looked so exquisite.

We were taking some shots of Megan and her lovely bridesmaids, when the dashing fellas showed up to strut their stuff.

John and Megan had decided to see each other before the ceremony. Woo hoo! If anyone is unsure about whether or not this is a good idea, just know that having a "first glance" meeting allows moments like these...

Y'all know I can't resist a funny sign and a willing couple!

Just after the ceremony, the sun was setting, and we were able to head into the vineyards for a few more shots of the new Mr and Mrs Klonga. I think they've perfected the Hollywood dip. Well done you two!

John and Megan shared countless warm moments. This one was during their first dance.

This may just be the most adorable dancing photo I've ever taken. A proud daddy and his sweet little girl.

Speaking of dancing, I LOVE a bride who isn't afraid to break it down! Go Megan!

Here's to a life of happiness and adventure! Thanks so much, Megan and John!

To see a slideshow of more images from this gorgeous wedding, please click HERE

kida!

Kida is young, adorable, and full of spirit. Yet, like SO many actresses with the same cool looks and bubbly personality, she was using headshots that made her look older and completely different than the gal you see in person. I'm really happy that she came to me to get new shots that look like her, and bring out her natural beauty. By "natural" I also mean that I barely had to wave my Photoshop wand on these images since Kida is blessed with a face that needs no touch-ups. She's very nice, so please don't hate her.

I wish her the best of luck with her budding acting career! We had talked about the upcoming Halloween festivities, and I hope her Naomi Campbell costume (complete with cell phone rage) was a big hit. Hilarious!

card designs

I've been working with some new card designs to use for baby announcements and holiday greetings. I like layouts that veer a bit from the traditional. I know....next, I'll be trying to tell you that the sky is blue! To make these examples, I used some shots from past family sessions. For some reason, I thought the black & white images worked best. Let me know if you agree/disagree. I luvs me some input! Johnny 5 needs input! Here's what a geek I am....one of my external hard drives is named Johnny 5. If you get that reference, then I'm sorry that you are as old and geeky as I am. If you don't get it, go to bed, it's past your bedtime (and get a haircut).

Here are just a few of the card designs that I'll be using this holiday season, baby season, wabbit season, and duck season. That reference is even OLDER! I'd better go watch some episodes of "Gossip Girl", listen to some Jonas Brothers albums, and read "Twilight" ASAP.

First, the holiday cards...

...and here are some baby announcement cards...

Although November is packed full of family portrait sessions for the holidays, I can't believe that it's already time to start using the word "holidays"!