Summer is Here!

May 9, 2008 | Filed Under Wedding Magazines | 4 Comments 

And with summer comes the new ad for Weddings in Houston magazine! This time around, we’ve decided to go BIG! It will be full page ad that will come out in the very near future - I’ll keep you posted when it hits the store shelves!

I also submitted my entries today for the 2008 Brides Magazine Photo Contest, which is exclusive - only members of the Wedding Photojournalist Association are allowed to enter. First place winning images from each category will be featured in the November/December 2008 issue of BRIDES Magazine! The top 10 images from each category will also be published on BRIDES.com and WPJA.com. My fingers are crossed hoping that I might win a category or two!

Real Simple Planning!

February 14, 2008 | Filed Under Wedding Magazines | 2 Comments 

After seeing my friend Eric Hegwer mention the other day that he was a part of the Real Simple Guide to Wedding Planning, I couldn’t resist picking up my very own copy at the store today. (You know, it is sort of funny to look around the house of someone who has been married for four years and see all of the wedding magazines I have here!) I haven’t sat down yet to spend a lot of time with it, but from what I have read so far it is a great resource! And Real Simple always has great info online to go with their magazines - be sure to check out Questions to Ask Your Photographer, which I plan on writing an answer page to here on the blog this weekend.

I also recommend the Must-Have Wedding Shot List article - which really lists shots that most wedding photojournalist style photographers normally get. I know they are all shots that Elaine & I work together to get at all of our weddings. Be cautious with giving your photographer a shot list though. I was once an attendant at a wedding where the bride was so focused on getting everything on her must-have shot list of posed shots, she actually missed at least half of her reception! Your guests are there to have a great time with you, and as a photographer I always encourage people to spend time being the center of attention at the party. I promise, in the end you will treasure the real photos that happen capturing the reception so much more than the set-up shots you just had to have! Throughout the day, I’m looking for those natural, beautiful moments, all which mean more than anything else in the end.

Pick up your very own copy and enjoy!

The New Ad!

November 8, 2007 | Filed Under Wedding Magazines, Wedding Photography | 3 Comments 

While gone at the workshop last week, I got a call from Weddings in Houston magazine. I have an ad with them already, but it points at the Fresh Photography site. I had considered changing it but thought I had already missed the deadline when I thought of it. Turns out, I was wrong. From when she called, I had exactly 48 hours to get them a new ad.

By the way - I am *SO* not a graphic designer. And they needed it in CMYK format (not what I normally use), and had some pretty specific requirements. Fortunately, John Sanderson was there and willing to help me out.

Then I realized that I didn’t have all of my photos with me. My backups were at home.

I did have this one though, since I had just taken it earlier in the week. The man in the photograph is Jon Leidel, and he is a fabulous photographer in Asheville, North Carolina. Fortunately, he was attending the last day of the workshop with us and was sitting right in front of me. So I asked him if I could have permission to use their photo in the ad. Thankfully, he said yes. (I checked with Anna later at dinner that night, and she also agreed.)

Within 40 minutes, while listening to Amber Holritz talk at the same time, I put together a new ad. It isn’t perfect - I wish I had edited out the dappled sunlight on his sleeve- but it was FAST. Hopefully, it will get people’s attention and they will find their way to the website. I mean really, how could you resist that curl?

The new ad will run in the January issue of Weddings in Houston magazine! I’ll let you know as soon as it hits the store shelves!