Wedding Bells

Weddings are a lot of fun.  Sometimes they're also a lot of fun when you're the photographer at them (and scared to death you're going to mess up big time).  Today was one of those days where somehow I managed to have fun while shooting a wedding!

Sorry, you're not going to see any shots w/ people in them - it's only fair that the bride and groom be the first to see those.  Instead, I will share the shots that help set the mood for the wedding.

I was asked to take the photos by the bride, who is an aide at Mom's assisted living facility.  Having shot a few weddings before, and not liking being completely stressed out by it, I initially said I wouldn't do it.  However, I am blessed to know several photographers who have gone through the community college photography program, and asked one of them (who is The Other Joy) if she wanted to work with me on this.  She did, so we came up with pricing, got a contract off the Internet, and were in business.  Yikes!  WHAT was I thinking??  Was I thinking?

I go about taking pictures for an event as if I were doing photojournalism, and the event is my assignment.  The pictures, when used together, set the tone and tell the story.  For a wedding, there are many pictures you can't re-shoot; it's a one time chance to get the shot.  No pressure there!!

Shooting a wedding then, I don't want shots that are OK.  I want all of them to be fabulous.  Unreal expectation I know . . . people don't all look happy at the same time in a lot of group photos . . . sometimes you have an amazing shot lined up and somebody walks in front of the camera to block it and the moment is gone.

How many brides will admit they don't remember a whole lot about who was at the wedding or reception?  They are so stressed out about the day that they just want to get through it!  I've heard several friends say that it wasn't until they were looking through their photos that they realized Aunt Fanny and Uncle Ferd showed up.  There is so much going on for the bride and groom that they don't always get to see their guests are really having fun.

I like to get to the church or wedding location at least 30 minutes before the bride wants me there.  That gives me an opportunity to look around and scope out the decorations and read through the order of service, and get photos to help the wedding story unfold.

Sometimes the very unusual or little things strike a chord; other times the well known and expected grabs the heart.  I don't know why it's different at different weddings, but it happens that way for me.

Today's wedding was pretty small; I think we counted about 80 place settings in addition to the bridal table (which was about 12).  I liked the way they decorated, especially the centerpieces - they were similar, but not identical.  Tokens of thanks for the guests were decorated to coordinate with each other, but had slight differences.  It all tied together very nicely.

This shot is probably not one the bride or groom will be interested in, but I absolutely LOVE it.  Any idea what it is?  It's a chandelier, and I'm standing directly under it.

I loved the little crystal-like kisses used for decoration.  They sparkled and tossed the light around, and were just cute.  They added interest to some of the plainer areas, and the bride and groom are definitely "bling" lovers!

The boutonniere for the groomsmen.  I love this shade of blue.

Detailing on the flower girl's dress.  LOVED it.  She was adorable.

Just a small glimpse of the wedding cake . . . one small part of the decoration.  It was very pretty.  The bakery will provide the bride and groom a small fresh cake on their first anniversary!  No need to freeze the top section.  I like that!

I liked that the bride and groom decided to use their nicknames for everything but the official part of the ceremony.  I had to giggle though - the pastor couldn't remember the bride's official name and said it wrong twice.  Now see, don't those cute little crystal-like kisses sparkle nicely??

The photos are uploaded to my computer, and have also been saved to a memory card so The Other Joy and I can go through both hers and mine tomorrow and start making the hard decisions.  I guess that means I should go to bed and get some rest.  It was a long day.  But it was fun, too.

Blogger Block?

I think this must be a record of sorts for me - the longest I've not blogged . . . I really was missing it.  But we've either had extreme heat or thunderstorms, both of which will sometimes cause extreme headaches for me.  It's been a miserable week!

Tomorrow is going to be a fun but challenging day for me.  I am going to be shooting a wedding for one of the aides at Mom's assisted living facility.  I was honored when she asked me, but terrified of the responsibility and pressure I put on myself to do a good job.  Then, I had an absolutely fabulous idea to ask a young photographer to do the wedding with me.  And her name is Joy!  She has been through the local community college's photography program, and has worked with her uncle who is a professional photographer, so she brings the experience in posing and editing (about all I do for editing most days is cropping) that I sorely lack and was most concerned about.  Whew.

Yeah, the bride and groom are getting dirt cheap rates and will get great photos.  We'll get some great experience and a chance to see if this might become something we want to work together.

Tonight we went to the rehearsal, and I got a few pictures.  No, I'm not posting any of people - just  some of the decorations they'd already set up.  The wedding and reception are going to be in the same hall, which will be handy in some ways.

I was on my way back home after the rehearsal when I saw a GREAT opportunity for some more pics that I don't often get a chance at - construction equipment left unattended!!

I want to learn to run these kind of machines.  I also want to drive a Zamboni (I've ridden on one, and that was a blast!).

I must go on record about one of my pet peeves after working six years in Construction Management . . . you do not walk on a cement sidewalk (or swim in a cement pond).  Cement is an ingredient used to make concrete (for those practicing for SAT/ACT type tests, cement is to concrete as flour is to cake).  The finished product that is mixed and poured is concrete.  I've also been told by what I assume must be construction aficionados the even more correct term is concretus, and it is placed, not poured.  Getting off soapbox now . . .

Surely there's a hose around the construction site to clean out the scoop and tires on this machine (above and below).  I'd say they've both seen better days and easier treatment!

Rebar (above and below) . . . and I don't think they carried either group in the drink carrier above! It just kind of made me chuckle to see it there . . .

And of course, since I've been obsessing about clouds lately, I have to throw in some pics of them as well!  They were awfully pretty today.

And the final image that saddens me to see at my high school.  Really?  Police need a spot of their own to park in?  Just how often are they there?

I'm thinking there's no blogger block, even after almost a week off.  More like blogger diarrhea . . . ceremony, construction, clouds, and cops . . . working the alliteration angle!

No, I will not be posting wedding photos tomorrow unless they are artsy type photos - and Sunday I'll be working with the other Joy on selecting and editing photos from the wedding.  I hope to find time both days to get some pics taken.

Gorgeous Restoration

I just recently got home from visiting a restoration project a friend of mine worked for a year through Neighborhood Stabilization Programs.  CityWide Development Corporation headed up the program (they are the financial arm of the City of Dayton and work to help restore/stabilize neighborhoods and/or businesses within the city limits), and one of my former employers.

I am still in awe.  This house is a three story Craftsman style that was built in 1920.  It was gratifying to see so much of the original fixtures and flooring were able to be restored.  It's been hard to pick just a few pictures (I took almost 200 and kept about half of them), but here we go!



DINING ROOM:

This is the "key" to open/close the flue to the fireplace!  Most fireplaces with this feature had the key lost long ago.

There are a lot of houses in this neighborhood that have managed to hold on to the stained glass windows; I haven't seen any with as much beautiful stained glass as this house though.

And the stained glass was not limited to windows . . . several of the lamp shades are stained glass.

Sometimes it helps to be short - I got amazing views of the bottom of the lamp shades . . . 

  

LIVING ROOM:

LIBRARY:

KITCHEN:

BREAKFAST ROOM:

I'm not sure where this was taken, but I loved that they were able to keep so much of the original hardware/fixtures.

2nd FLOOR SUNROOM:

2nd FLOOR

So much built-in cabinetry!  Beautiful, and great storage.

I wouldn't have kept this linoleum, but it does fit with the restoration, darn it!

 

3rd FLOOR:

My mind kept telling me this should be a rug; it was linoleum.  I kept picking my feet up so I wouldn't trip over the edge of it, knowing it was linoleum!

You know me and my fascination with light and shadow; I loved the play of the light and shadow on the well worn floor.

Light fixture in the 3rd floor bathroom; I love the smokey look to it.

I love this alcove - I didn't notice the light reflecting on the walls and ceiling when I took the picture though.  I thought the  repetition of geometry and angles were interesting.

2nd FLOOR (again):

The Office

FOYER:

  

There was also a basement I didn't go check out!  I hope everyone involved in this project is proud of the work they did.  It's wonderful to see such a beautiful piece of art restored as a whole, and I'm very glad they maintained the style of the original house.  Job well done!!