One of the things I was looking forward to most during my trip back to Seattle was meeting my friend Rachel in Skagit Valley to visit the Tulip Festival.  Seattle has had a brutal spring, so we were about a week early for the tulips.  We tried not to cry over it too much, though, instead enjoying the fields of daffodils that Rachel and Will were dressed perfectly for!

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Rachel and I have been friends for five years, and this is only the third time we’ve gotten together!  But, thanks to technology, that doesn’t matter at all!  Between instant messaging, message boards, and email it’s almost like she’s lived next door this whole time (instead of Canada).

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Don’t you want her to be your friend, too?

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Rachel brought her youngest baby with her (who was an incredible trooper and put up with our late night chatting [they eventually kicked us out of the restaurant] and marathon shopping like no other baby could).  He also happens to be crazy cute!

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Rachel is a wonderful momma.  I go to her for advice/commiseration all the time!

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You can always tell a bad-arse photographer by her broken-arse lens:

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I love these two shots because it’s totally universal.  On the left we have the face that all photographers ACTUALLY make while looking at their camera LCD.  It’s a thinking face.  On the right we have the face that photographers make when they’re told “hey–smile–this is gonna be a cute shot.”

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This is one of my favorite shots of the day–proof that the outting had very little to do with the little people we brought along:

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But since he was so cute in his yellow rain slicker, I got a few shots of Will.  This one is SO Will.  He is what grandmothers euphamistically call “busy” and mothers call “the reason every drink I have after 1pm is spiked.”

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Posted in Grown-upsPersonal

 

Amanda and Steven were married last Friday at Stonebrook Manor in Thornton.  They are one of those couples with an incredible love for each other that makes you feel all warm and happy!

Amanda was such a beautiful bride…and completely fast at getting ready, too!  I wish you could have seen the whirlwind of activity in the getting ready room and then BAM!  All the girls were done!

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See what I mean about Amanda being a stunning bride?

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I love these shots of Amanda with her parents!

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In Colorado, you’re able to marry yourselves.  A lot of our couples have followed this route and it’s fun to see all the ways they customize their ceremony.  Steven and Amanda performed a Native American basket ritual where they gave each other a basket with items that symbolize their love for each other and their hopes for the future.

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You cannot doubt their love for each other.  I’ll let the moments Nic caught speak for themselves:

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Their fist official kiss as newlyweds.  (One of the benefits of running your own ceremony, is that you can kiss and hug throughout [as you can see above]!)

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The wind was TERRIBLE that day, so we did all of our pictures inside (wind is actually the worst possible weather for photographers–unlike rain, or snow or sun or cold or hot, it’s the one thing I just can’t stand)!

My take on the left, Nic’s on the right:

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I love cake shots!!  (I’ll share my trick on the next “photography tip tuesday.”)

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Nic is the toast shot master in our house.  I usually toss out 90% of mine.  But dude!  This one’s mine this time!

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First dance (God bless DJs and their wonderful lights!):

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When I got the shot on the left, I told Nic he might as well pack up and go home, cause I’d just rocked it.  ;P

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Party time!!  I love this shot of Steven’s brother dancing with Amanda!  I think it perfectly captures how much fun he was having dancing all night!

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Amanda and Steven, thank you for sharing your incredible love for each other with us!  We drove home talking about how cute you are together!

Everybody else, stay tuned for the portrait shoot we did with them later that weekend!

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I like a behind the scenes shot that gets us both in the shot!

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Posted in Grown-upsToddler PhotographerWedding Photographer

 

Our last day at WPPI finally had some sunshine.   We were happy to have some light to play with as we did portraits for each other!

The adorable and talented photographer Shannon Montez:

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Another gorgeous and brilliant photographer (and rad WPPI roommate): Alison Beachem!

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This one we took on our 28th floor balcony–using the neighboring hotel tower like a giant reflector!

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I love these girls!

Posted in Grown-ups