Category Archives: wedding planning

Incredible Weekend

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This weekend actually started out on Thursday with an engagement session for Shannon and Derrick. They will be getting married in October. We met for their engagement session and went to the Village Green at Stone Prarie. It was a great evening and you can tell these two are so in love. I had a great time photographing them.

We started a little before sunset. There was a quarter or a half moon in the evening sky which added to the romance of the evening. Looking at these photos, you would never know we were in the middle of an office complex. The area was so quiet and serene that evening. Just us and the wildlife. Finally we had a nice sunset and it was time to go home.
Shannon and Derrik's Engagement Photo at Stone Prairie
A photo of Shannon and Derrik at Stone Prairie taken during their engagement session
A quiet wedding moment during engagement photo session on the trail at Stone Prairie
A sunset engagment photo of Shannon and Derrik taken at Stone Prairie

Friday I photographed Renee and Nick’s wedding. This was the first of two wedding for the weekend. It was a lot of fun. We started at Renee’s house where the women were getting ready. There were a a couple of flower girl’s who were not sure what everything was about.
Renee getting ready for her bridal photograph on her wedding day

When I got to the church, the guys were not ready. So I had some time to experiment a little bit. The church has these great stained glass windows. I wanted to see how I could use the light coming through these windows to my advantage.
Elgin Church Photo on the wedding day.
Nick's wedding day photo

After the ceremony, we went outside the church for some photos. I was lucky enough that there was a light breeze to move Renee’s veil just right for this photo! Sometimes, everything works out.
My favorite photo from Renee and Nick's wedding

Then it was off to the Sheraton Four Points for the reception. After seeing this sweet table I wanted to skip dinner and start with the deserts. I also saw something interesting, the DJ was actually using an I-pod to play prerecorded music. What ever happened to discs? Not records mind you, but CDs! I have seen some DJs use computers before but never an I-Pod.
Photo of the desert table at Nick and Renee's wedding
iPod DJ at the wedding

Saturday, I actually took some time off to celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary with my wife. I can’t believe it has been 9 years with this wonderful woman. In those 9 years, there have been several trips to Walt Disney World, 2 dogs, 3 kids and so much more! If not for her, I would not have been able to open the studio.

To celebrate our anniversary, we ate dinner at Weber’s. A couple of years ago I photographed a wedding at Weber’s in downtown Chicago. The food was great and I’ve always wanted to go back. About a year or so ago, they opened one here in Schaumburg. However, we’ve never had the opportunity to go. For our anniversary, my in-laws came and babysat our three kids so Sheryl and I could go out for dinner. It was nice to be able to eat and talk without the constant interruption from one of the three kids. All too soon the evening was over and time to go back home.

Sunday found me back at Starved Rock for another wedding. This time it was for Lauren and Joel’s wedding. These folks are such great people and so in love. Every time I met with them, you could see the love they have for each other. Believe it or not, this was my first opportunity to photograph a Jewish wedding. The bride and groom do see each other before the ceremony. I did want to provide them the opportunity for a “first look” and get the expression on Joel’s face when he saw his bride for the first time.

Following the advice provided by Cliff Mautner at our photographer’s workshop, I had Lauren stand by herself for a few minutes. Then I had Joel come to meet us. Anticipation! You can tell just from looking at the photos of Lauren that she can’t wait to see Joel. I was able to capture his expression as he rounded the corner and saw Lauren for the first time on their wedding day. Mission accomplished.

Laureen anxiously awaiting a wedding day first look at Joel.
Joel walking to meet Laureen at Starved Rock Lodge.

A little bit later, I was taking Joel’s photos when this butterfly decided to spend some time with Joel. No matter what we did, the butterfly just would not leave Joel alone. It was hyterical.

Photo of an unexpected wedding guest at Laureen and Joel's Starved Rock Wedding

Lauren and Joel’s ceremony was in the Great Hall at Starved Rock. I have never seen this place look any better. Everybody did a fabulous job decorating the place. There were so many little details that when they all came together – WOW.

Starved Rock lodge setup for a Jewish Wedding

At the reception, Joel’s thirteen year old daughter, Robin, sang “At Last” during the first dance. She sang so well that I expect to hear her on the radio or on Broadway someday. Well what is a Jewish wedding without the Hora? This was Robin’s first time being put in one of the chairs. You can see the fear on her face as she is first lifted into the air. As she feels more comfortable, her expression changes to one of excitement.
Starved Rock room first dance reception photograph
Photograph of an expected moment during the Hora.
The Hora Photo during a Jewish wedding reception at Starved Rock Lodge

Finally, it was time for Lauren’s dad’s speech. I guess he is known in the family for his speeches and everybody was waiting for the toast. Well the “confluence of influences” was quite a hit. It had everybody laughing. Some folks were laughing so hard they were crying. You just had to be there. Unfortunately, the evening came to an end about two hours before I think it should have. A great time was had by all.

Laureen and Joel's Jewish Wedding Reception at Starved Rock lodge.

August 2006: Catching Up

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Wow,

I can’t believe that Michah is almost 4 weeks old already. Where does the time go? Somehow, I look back and realized I’ve fallen behind with all of my work. There is so much stacked up that I will just have to start digging and then one day I hope to be all caught up.

The day after Michah was born, I was scheduled to photograph Arianna and Tony’s wedding. Arianna is a big Cinderella fan. So much so that her entire wedding was themed, Cinderella. The couple got married in a beautiful Greek Orthodox Church near downtown Chicago. There was so much to photograph. While I did visit with my family before the wedding, I owe a big thank you to Kelly Moore for giving me an after break for a second visit.

Photo of Bridesmaids flowers at a Chicago Wedding
Arianna and Tony's Chicago Greek Orthodox Wedding
Arianna and Tony's Chicago Greek Orthodox Wedding Ceremony
Arianna and Tony's Wedding Photo

I did have a weekend off but there was still no time to get anything done. My family was in from Syracuse and Sheryl’s family was in from Milwaukee to see the baby and celebrate Meghan’s 6th birthday. Hard to believe she is 6 and going into the first grade. After my week off, it was time to celebrate with Courtney and Jim. Their wedding ceremony was held at the Naperville Settlement Church. The reception was at Mill Creek Golf Club. It was a long drive from the church to the reception. The golf club made the mistake of letting the groomsmen drive the golf carts to the photo locations. Here are some photos from Courtney and Jim’s wedding.

Wedding bands
Courtney and Jim's Naperville Settlement Church Wedding Photograph
Photo from Courtney and Jim's Naperville Settlement Church Wedding
Photograph of Courney and Jim outside the Naperville Setllement Church after their wedding
Courtney and Jim's Bridal party photos taken at Mill Creek Golf Course

The week after Courtney and Jim’s wedding, I attended a 4 day Digital Wedding Forum (DWF) Photographers’ workshop. Since it just so happened to be in Arlington Heights, I decided it was well worth the time and effort to attend. There were 4 different days with 4 different photographers. The first day was taught by Jeff and Julia Woods. In addition to talking about balancing our lives (Julia said “balanced” 38 times in 6 hours) they showed us how they photograph an engagement session. Then we got to try it ourselves with some models.

The next day, Cliff Mautner taught us about marketing and how to use difficult lighting conditions to our advantage. Once again, he showed us what he does then let us try it ourselves. The last two days were taught by Becker, workflow and Laura Novak, business strategy. It was an exciting 4 days with information overload. I wish I could have joined the group for the evening events but family responsibilities called.

Last weekend was a little busy as I photographed my first Indian wedding as a lead photographer. It was a major change from the weddings which I typically photograph. All of the women were wearing saris of various colors. It was actually quite colorful. The flowers which Alina selected were also quite beautiful. All in all it was a fantastic day. With over 500 guests, the wedding really kept me going.

Chicago Area Traditional Area Wedding Party Photo
Neat photo of a wedding unity candle
Flowers from a Chicago area traditional Indian wedding ceremony
A photo of the bride during a Traditional Indian Wedding Ceremony

Finally we have Amanda and Joe’s engagement session. There is a nice hidden park at 115th and Harlem just beside the Cal Sag waterway. We were there just before sundown for this session. I really used the new skills and techniques I learned at my DWF photographer’s workshop just the week before. Amanda and Joe were a lot of fun to work with and I think this is one of my best sessions ever.

Amanda and Joe's engagement photo
Amanda and Joes engagement photo
Engagment Photo of Amanda and Joe

Tuesday was Meghan’s last day of summer vacation. We took the family to the Brookfield Zoo. As there are e-mails to read and reply to, albums to design and other work to get to, you will just have to wait a couple of days to see the photos from Michah’s first outing to the zoo.

Outpouring of Support

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By now you all know Sheryl and I are expecting our third child any day now. At our last Dr.’s appointment, the Dr. said our son was measuring about 2 weeks ahead of schedule. It is very likely he will be born before his due date of August 7. Mathew followed the same growth pattern and was also born early. This news was not a big surprise to me. The Dr. wants Sheryl to complete 37 weeks of pregnancy before the baby is born. That would be Monday July 17. It basically means the baby could arrive at any moment now.

Meanwhile, I am scheduled to photograph Michelle and Ryan’s wedding on Saturday. The photographer who had previously told me he would be my backup, decided to take another booking. I was panicked. If I have a backup photographer, the baby will wait. With my luck, without a backup available, it is 100% certain my new son will decide to arrive at the worst possible time, on Saturday during the wedding!

I put the word out via several of my wedding photography networks. I received many replies from photographers. Some were available and others were not but they were calling their photographer friends on my behalf to find somebody to assist me. What an outpouring of support! This is one of the benefits I receive as a member of my professional associations. While you hope to never need the help of your fellow photographers, it is nice to know they are there when you are in a bind.

During the week, I have been busy working on several projects. I completed the first draft of Maureen and Jason’s wedding album. They are going to have a great heirloom to show their kids and grand kids about the day they got married.

Collage of wedding photos as seen in the album
Wedding Photo collage for Maureen and Jason's Wedding Album
Collage of wedding photgraphs as seen in the wedding album

On Sunday, I photographed the engagement session for Cheryl and Mark. They are getting married on September 9. We had a lot of fun at Twin Lakes in Palatine during their engagement session. It was a chance to get to know these folks a little better. Mark has a great sense of humor and I can’t wait to join them on their wedding day.

Cheryl and Mark's Engagement Photo taken at Twin Lakes

Next, as a special gift for Meghan’s Kindergarten teacher, I created a 22 page book chronicling Meghan’s first year of school in photos. I started at the first day of school and followed her through the year. We concluded on report card day. Here are some of spreads from Miss Sullivan’s remembrance book.

Event photo collage for an album
Album collage with event photographs
Album photo collage with photos taken at Brookfield Zoo

Another Reason I Love Digital Cameras

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Congrats to Jason and Maureen who just got married Saturday. I was fortunate to photograph both their wedding ceremonies. They had a traditional Christian wedding which was followed by a handfastening ceremony in the park. It was nice to see something new.

As is my practice, I let the wedding party see some of the photos on my camera’s monitor after I take the picture. This week was no different and yet it was. One of the bridesmaids is planning her own wedding for April 2007. She was travelling back home to Kentucky on Monday. So we planned a meeting for Sunday evening. After seeing me work and the images I showed her, she decided she wanted me as her wedding photographer, even though the wedding is in Indianapolis. She booked me on the spot at our meeting! So welcome Kristen and Brad.

Today we celebrated Mathew’s 3rd birthday, with his Nana and Poppa. They drove in from Milwaukee to give Mathew his gifts(mostly clothes with Thomas on them). Charles and Harriet gave Mathew his first bike when we visited them last week. They couldn’t wait to give it to him.

We even had something for him from Grandpa Allen… A train table. Did I mention that Mathew loves trains? Especially Thomas! Meghan helped me put the table together as well as a 5 year old can. Anyway, for some strange reason, she thinks that her grandpa, Allen, invented the Allen wrench because it is named after him!

We had a great day. I’ll post the photo, including the Thomas cake, in a day or so.

Jenna and Chris’ Wedding is Saturday

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I spoke with Jenna earlier today and finalized the details for Saturday’s wedding. It seems like just yesterday Jenna, Chris and I first met at Chris’s apartment in Lombard. Looking back it really was last September, 8 months ago! Wow does the time fly and there have been many changes.

The most important changes since I first met Jenna and Chris are my Certified Professional Photographer Wedding Endorsement, this blog and some of the new ideas I’ve got for wedding photography. For instance, just this past weekend, I was at the Schaumburg Art Festival and picked up an idea from a fine art photographer that I’m excited to try. That is using mylar as a background to create irregular reflections in the background. I can’t wait to try something similar with the rings, flowers and invitation! If I can find some mylar between now and Saturday, I’ll show you the results.

Getting back to my conversation with Jenna, I think that the two most important pieces of advice I have for any couple on thier wedding day is:

1) Just enjoy the day, no matter what happens!
2) Get a lot of sleep Wednesday and Thursday nights before the wedding.

Cost and Value

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I received some lower quotes so I was just wondering what the difference was in pricing. I am comparing right now, but I do want quality photos.

You have no idea how many times I hear something like this. Invariably the person who says this books with the seemingly lower price photographer only to pay more in the end.

My brother, Rick, owns ProScapes, a landscaping and snow removal company located in Central New York. ProScapes is not the least expensive company in the area but they are one of the best! Actually, I’m quite proud of my little brother’s accomplishments!

Anyway, one day Rick told me he lost a landscaping contract for a local restaurant. The previous general manager had been transfered and the new GM went with the low cost provider. Rick didn’t seem the least bit upset. He said this is a cycle he goes through with some of his contracts. Eventually, the manager would realize the low cost provider did not provide the same quality or level of service as does ProScapes. Eventually, Rick would receive a call from the manager asking for a quote to fix landscaping damaged by the low cost provider and take over the contract. The low cost provider ended up costing the restaurant more money in the long run.

With wedding photography, the low cost provider can end up costing you more. For instance 6 or 8 hours of photography coverage may not be enough to fully cover your wspecial day. Especially when your DJ decides to have your first dance at 8:30! Your album package may include 60 units but the sample album you loved is 120 units! All of these extras can make your “low cost” photographer cost you much more in the end. After all of this, you still need to take into account the qualifications of your photographer. After all, you will have your photographs for the rest of your life!

Wedding Day Tips

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Earlier this evening I met with Michelle and Ryan who have a July 15th wedding planned. We spent about 2 hours scheduling the events for their special day. I want my clients to have an unforgettably wonderful day. A little advanced planning goes a long way. Towards the end of our conversation, Michelle’s mom asked me for any words of wisdom I might have. After a little thought I gave them several. I decided I would share some of them with you this evening.

  1. Once your wedding day begins, there is no more planning you can do. So enjoy your day!
  2. Delegate people to handle problems for you. Traditionally this was the job of the maid of honor and best man. Sometimes you’ll want somebody who is not in the bridal party to be able to act on your behalf.
  3. A week before your wedding, test drive all of your routes. This includes where you are getting ready, to the church, and to the reception hall. Look for any signs of immenient construction which you’ll need to avoid on your wedding day.
  4. Call the town to determine if you need a permit for outdoor photos or if there will be any special events which might interfere with you plans. This is especially true for Rosemont (permits needed) and Long Grove (special events).
  5. Provide only clear liquids to drink when getting ready, spills will not be seen on the wedding dress.
  6. If you must have doughnuts for snacks, make sure they are not powdered with sugar. It gets all over the guys tuxes and is difficult to remove.
  7. Finally on the topic of breakfast snacks, make sure everything is cut bite sized. This avoids spills and drops.
  8. Have the guys get their tuxes as early as possible on the day before the wedding. When they get back to the house, try everything on to make sure you have everything. If something is missing, the tux shop will have time to retrieve the missing items from the ware house.
  9. Ladies, have your nails done the day before the wedding. It takes less time to fix a chip than to have your nails done.
  10. Test your hair style the week before your wedding. Also take photos of your hair in case something happens to the stylist you are planning to use.

PS. Happy Birthday to my Dad (who stopped counting birthdays 30 years ago!)

Jenna and Chris’ Engagement Photo

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Jenna and Chris' engagement photo

Jenna e-mailed me and said:

Chris and I love all the engagment photos you took! We decided to pick number nine as our engagment picture.

Jenna and Chris had scheduled their engagement session in late March. Somehow, we managed to get one of the first really nice days of the year. We had a real fun session at a local Lombard area park. The photo they picked(and shown above) is actually one of the first ones I took and it was in Jenna’s back yard! Don’t these guys make a lovely couple? I can’t wait for their wedding June 3rd!

As a reminder to my current clients, if you have not yet scheduled your engagement session, the spring time with all of the blooming flowers is a great time of year for engagement photos. Please call to schedule your complimentary engagement session today.

A Busy Weekend

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As many of you can imagine, a wedding photographer’s weekend can be a busy time. While most folks get a day or two to relax or run errands, weekends are my busiest days. This weekend was no different. Knowing that it would be busy, I spent Friday evening with my family. We took the kids to the McDonald’s playland to eat and then burn off some energy. However, we couldn’t stay too late as I had a wedding the next day.

Actually, I was joining another photographer at his wedding to see how he does things and as a chance to experiment. When you are the primary photographer, a wedding is no place to take risks. However, this was my chance to try an idea, photograph a wedding completely in black and white. It was a lot of fun working with another accomplished photographer. We bounced a lot of ideas off of one another and in the long run it will make both of us better. I learned a lot from my experiment. I hope to be able to post a couple of photos from this wedding in a couple of days. But my paying clients come first.

Which brings us to today’s engagement session. Actually it was earlier this evening. Lauren and Joel are getting married over Labor Day weekend at Starved Rock. They live out of town and came in to visit her parents for Passover. The only time we could schedule their engagement session was this evening (Sunday) at about 7:30. It was around sunset when we started the session at the Schaumburg Town Center. I had been here before for engagement sessions. But like Disney World, the center takes on a whole new look at night. We had an incredible engagement session! See for yourself:

Lauren and Joel's Engagement Session at Schaumburg Town Center

Lauren and Joel's Engagement Session at Schaumburg Town Center

Lauren and Joel's Engagement Session at Schaumburg Town Center

This spot is not easily seen from the road. And they wondered why I wanted to meet them at the Oberweis Dairy (it is next door to the town center).

Addison Bridal Show

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Today was the last bridal show of the spring season for me. I never know what to expect at a bridal show. Some shows are so busy you can’t even take a breath and questions are being thrown at you from every direction. Other shows are a bit slower and I actually have a chance to talk to the brides and hear about their wedding plans. Today’s show was one of the slower shows.

While some of the other vendors don’t like the slow shows, I think it gives me time to give each visitor to my booth a little bit more personal attention. Part way through the show, I realized the folks at the formalwear booth across the aisle were sending the brides my way. At the end of the show we got to talking and Vince told me he could tell I really cared about my clients and paid attention to the details. I’m happy my way of business is visible to others. Now I just have to wait and see if anybody decides to book me as a result of this show.

After the show, I visited Debbie and Bob, Melissa’s parents (my January 27th wedding) to design their parent album. Just before Melissa’s wedding, I knew I needed a new sample album. Her wedding was so beautiful that I decided to use hers. I also wanted to prove to myself that I could design an album in the week following a wedding. After the sample album design was completed I let the happy couple view my new sample design. However, they wanted to see the book before going any further.

6 weeks after the wedding my new sample album arrived. This proves to me that I can deliver a client’s album within 3-4 months of their wedding! So now, while my client’s friends are just getting their proofs three months after the wedding, my clients will be getting a finished album!

When I arrived at Debbie and Bob’s house, I showed them the sample album. Debbie and Bob were so thrilled with it, they wanted to use it as the basis for their parent album. Several times Debbie mentioned that she never would have thought to have included some of the background images and used them as I did. They gave me a list of about a dozen changes to the sample album to further personalize it for themselves. I can’t wait myself to see how the finished parent’s album comes out.