Absolute Weddings Bridal Show, 2012
It is now tuesday, and I can say life has finally settled back to its usual self again. I'm sitting comfortably in my office, sipping my coffee and processing print order. It's comforting knowing that there isn't anything pressing that is forcing me back out into the Northern elements.
As many of you know, I participated in the Absolute Weddings Bridal Show this past weekend. It was a solid week of preparation leading up to the event. Organizing every detail from handouts, business cards, signage, lighting, food and beverage as well as confirming two days of babysitting proved to be a hefty undertaking. The dumping of snow and the deep freeze was just the icing on my trial-flavored cake!
Being that I love weddings, it's always a treat to be immersed in wedding culture as well as having the opportunity to meet hundreds of brides and get a better sense of what it is brides are looking for in wedding photography.
I have to thank my awesome wife, Tonya, for being with me the entire time and helping dispense answers - not to mention the little table she had set up with some of her most delicious baked deserts - they brought people in just as well as the photo slideshow did. She managed to get two gigs to do catered deserts which she certainly didn't intend to happen going into the show!
The show was a big step for TLC Photo; we have been relying primarily on word of mouth as well as search engines for our advertising for the past three years. It's the reality of having a small business, small budget. Attending the show was a huge opportunity to give TLC Photo a presence as well as a voice. I'll admit that I've never had much interest in salesmanship side of business and so it was a bit of a challenge when the few moments arose where I needed deliver my strongest sales pitch. Fortunately, for the most part, the brides that visited my booth were super friendly, easy going, and really great listeners and participants. The positive feedback that we were given about our services, products and pricing was also very welcomed as it affirmed our determination of offering attractive products with the best service possible.
It was great meeting every single one of you that came to our booth and look forward to the chance to again see those that plan on signing up with us at some point in the future!
Jazmyne, Bridal Oil Painting
I love digital painting! I'm a huge fan of Corel Painter - and when I saw a little ad banner on a website promoting the release of version 12, I did not hesitate to scoop it up from the Corel store. Having recently converted to Mac, the experience of using Painter, with its updated interface, was more satisfying than ever. My next mission became obvious - paint another beautiful bride in classical oil brush strokes to further showcase my Portrait Paintings service.
My portrait painting showcase is growing steadily. What fuels me to continue is that the possibilities of paintings to create seem limitless - other than of course time and wall space.
Any photograph can be given the high end treatment of being painted. The best example I have in my home is a painting that I made which began from a little 35mm slide (taken in 1979) which I scanned and enlarged to 16x20. It doesn't have to be a photo taken in a professional studio. If the photo has deep meaning and has the look suitable to be given the painted treatment, I think that price shouldn't stand in the way when these most important memories are concerned.
The painting ran upward of 30 hours to complete. The hair and skin tones were easily the most time consuming, the details in the dress coming in a close third. As always, working the details in for the eyes are always the most satisfying.
Natasha+Alessandro
The fun part about planning a photo session for outdoors is that you really never know what what to expect weather-wise. The week preceding our shoot, temperatures were fairly mild. Come Sunday morning, the day of our shoot, temps dropped to minus 10 celcius - a factor that had a bit of effect on how the shoot went. Basically, we moved through it quite quickly. Ideally, you don't want to have too many layers to your subject, which just adds undesirable bulk and decreases the visual, physical... synergy (for lack of a better term)... between lovers.
What was nice was having a fresh, thin, and evenly dispersed layer of snow to set the wintery tone for the pics. The effect lends itself well for faking the "studio/white backdrop" look without the hassle of going to the studio as a second location. 
Don't worry - I did not have my subjects planted on the super thin ice of Ramsey in the picture below. They were indeed on firm ground!
It was a pleasure to work with Natasha and Alessandro - a fun couples just recently married. Natasha is a long time friend as well as an expert and salesperson well known in the local wedding market (ex. Priceless Bridals) whom I'm sure would recommend my services to any of her bridal clientele, I'm sure! Alessandro is a passionate and hard working cheff at Verdicchio Ristorante and apparently can cook a mean lamb which I'd love to sample one day.
COWBOYS
The boys were cowboys this past halloween. I think it was the movie, "Rango", which shifted theirs gears off of Lightning McQueen this year. I thought I'd treat them to a poster of themselves in their costumes for their bedroom. Had to borrow from the Rango theme to complete it, of course!
Heidi + Darren, oct.22/11
I was very much looking forward to this wedding because it's not every day that you get the chance to partake in a classic wedding. Every detail was carefully selected to represent a time that was from an era of style and class. The groom had his top hat and cane, the bride had her long train and veil. The reception was decorated with lanters and even an old letter box for the guests to drop in their well wishes. The portrait session was at the old fire station (now water works) near Ramsey; the ideal place to travel back in time a few decades.
You will notice a good deal of Bridal portraits - I've said it before in the past that I love to photograph the bride. It is of course easier and faster to direct one person versus a large group, true, but there is nothing more captivating than a beautiful bride and the emotions of the her wedding day.
Brittany & Sean, Sept. 24 2011
I'm going to take this opportunity and shift gears just a tad. It's typical that I focus my attention on the bride and groom when I share photos on my blog. Brittany and Sean placed a some heavy importance on documenting the family for their wedding portraits as an hour was devoted to photographing them alone. Since I normally don't post family pictures too often, I thought this was a perfect opportunity to share a bunch these with my viewers.
"The First Look"... much earlier than the ceremony
The Guys showing off their moves.
The girls showing off theirs.
The Family Session Begins!
A grandmother's love. Priceless.
Just love your many expressions, Sean.
A mother's Love. Again, priceless.
Bahahahaha!
Perfect sunset lighting... it always has to disappear too quickly...
Science North Cavern.
